


last first (blank)

by chatsdelune (greymooses)



Category: Monsta X (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Hogwarts, Cats, Childhood Friends, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Friends to Lovers, Growing Up, Implied Sexual Content, Internalized Homophobia, M/M, Mutual Pining, Slow Burn, bc it's ME how do i write a fic without cats, chae hyungwon: mvp, each chapter is a school year, epilogue is literally just disgusting future fluff, i will shove all my ships in no one can stop me, kids are at the very very very end, m for epilogue but it's pretty mild and very brief, referenced hyungheon, referenced wonkyun, referenced yoonmin, slow burn was a filthy lie i'm sorry, these tags are a mess jfc, they're Very Important okay, when they're old enough ofc
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-15
Updated: 2020-03-02
Packaged: 2021-02-25 04:08:05
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 36,306
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21809821
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/greymooses/pseuds/chatsdelune
Summary: "what do you think it will be like?" minhyuk asks."the sorting hat will keep us together," kihyun replies. "i'm sure of it."or: kihyuk as childhood best friends turned muggle-born slytherins, growing up and falling in love, told through a series of firsts during their time at hogwarts (mostly).
Relationships: Chae Hyungwon & Lee Minhyuk, Lee Minhyuk/Yoo Kihyun, Min Yoongi | Suga & Yoo Kihyun
Comments: 70
Kudos: 114





	1. year one

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> unedited and kinda messy at times pls forgive me. i got tired of writing without feedback and not posting this and just... living in a bubble bc it's rough, man. pls feed me if you like it, which i hope you do. some hogwarts trivia is... questionable, potentially, but anyway. i did research, so if i messed something up and you're a potterhead: 1. i'm sorry, 2. pls don't bug me about it bc i probably fudged the details on purpose.

minhyuk sighs, closing his book and setting it aside. with a burst of energy, he repositions, flipping himself onto his back with legs against the wall and head hanging off the edge of the bed. he twists his neck and stares at kihyun's cheek. kihyun doesn't like people talking to him when he's reading, so minhyuk waits for his presence to be acknowledged.

it's not long before kihyun turns his head and rolls his eyes. "you look like a tetris piece," he tells minhyuk.

"you say that every time."

"get longer legs and i'll stop."

minhyuk bites his tongue. he had a reason for getting kihyun's attention. their ongoing war over who will be the taller adult — kihyun is currently winning by 0.3 centimetres — was not it.

"what do you think it will be like?" he asks.

"if you'd read the book, you'd know."

"i don't mean facts about the castle or grounds or ghosts or founders, ki."

kihyun leans a bit to the right, knocking minhyuk's shoulder with his own, pondering the real question.

"the sorting hat will keep us together," he replies. "i'm sure of it."

~

the weather is cool on the day they leave, with the sun barely taking the edge off the crispness of the approaching autumn. minhyuk misses summer, but he's excited to finally be starting school. the train station is loud and bustling with activity and he clings to kihyun's arm because he can.

their parents follow behind them, pushing their carts of luggage and new cats; kihyun had all but banned minhyuk from getting a toad.

_"i'll never come to your room if you get a toad."_

_"i thought we were going to be roommates!"_

_"pandora would eat a toad," he explains. "we wouldn't be able to be roommates either."_

_minhyuk highly doubts that a magical cat would be dumb enough to eat a magical toad, but he relents. "fine. you're so weird. how can you name an animal before you've even met it?"_

_kihyun shrugs, and that's that._

"boys, do you know where you're going?" minhyuk's mother calls out from behind them.

"kihyunnie does!" minhyuk responds proudly. he feels kihyun stand up just a little bit straighter.

kihyun had spent weeks reading everything he could get his hands on about their new life at hogwarts and as wizards. minhyuk tried, but it was so much easier to let kihyun excitedly tell him about the facts he found interesting instead.

they reach the supposed entrance to their platform and kihyun abruptly stops, shaking his arm free of minhyuk's grip and turning to face their parents. he bounces, just barely, on the balls of his feet. it's contained excitement — as most of kihyun's is — that minhyuk has become accustomed to spotting after being friends for longer than either of them can remember.

goodbyes are exchanged, with minhyuk's mother fussing over the two of them enough for all four parents. everyone promises to write everyone else, now that they've gotten used to the owls that regularly appear at their houses. it's a very long few minutes for kihyun, who has never been as free with affection as minhyuk is.

eventually, the boys take control of their respective luggage carts. minhyuk and kihyun exchange a look, and kihyun nods, agreeing he'll go first. he takes a deep breath, puts one hand on pandora's carrier to keep it steady, and walks calmly at the wall.

when he disappears, minhyuk gives one last smile to the adults before running at the barrier himself, ready to follow kihyun into their new world.

~

"why didn't you tell me the slytherin dorms were _in the lake_?" minhyuk whispers, panicky, in kihyun's ear during their first feast.

minhyuk is… maybe a little afraid of deep water, and the idea of _sleeping_ under it, even in a magic castle, seems absurd. they only found out that magic was real a few weeks ago! what if the whole dorm collapses? minhyuk has no idea how kihyun can be so calm about this.

kihyun bites his lip. "i was hoping it wouldn't be an issue."

"you really thought we'd be in any other house?"

"there was a chance." kihyun slides his hand under the table and onto minhyuk's knee, but his eyes continue to scan the great hall, taking in the spectacle around them. minhyuk's shoulders sag, and he puts his own hand on top of kihyun's.

"ki, i'm sc—"

kihyun turns his hand over, grasping minhyuk's fingers in his own, and cuts him off. "you have me, okay?" he whispers. "i won't let the giant squid get you."

"there's a _giant squid_?!" minhyuk shrieks, then immediately clamps his hand over his mouth.

someone a few seats away calls out, "don't worry, he's really friendly!" and kihyun is laughing at him but his eyes are soft and he's still holding minhyuk's fingers and minhyuk nods, squeezing back before pulling free of kihyun's grip so he can eat.

kihyun keeps his hand on minhyuk's knee until they finish eating and leave, as a group, for the dorms. he must've forgotten it was there.

¤

minhyuk and kihyun are, thankfully, assigned each other as roommates. it’s unclear whether it’s coincidence or some magical or parental intervention, but they’re not about to complain. their neighbor is a second-year named yoongi that kihyun has become fast friends with, somehow. minhyuk doesn't understand it, but he's nice enough. he's a pureblood, but hasn't made minhyuk feel like crap for being muggle-born like some people already have.

when they arrive, all of their luggage is already in their room. pandora and minhyuk's still-unnamed cat are curled up on the beds.

"i guess they picked our beds for us," kihyun says, smiling.

"guess so."

minhyuk is still nervous about the lake thing, and refuses to look at the porthole window between their nightstands.

kihyun pokes him in the ribs. "come on, it's just like a sleepover."

they face away from each other and change into pajamas — a well-practiced routine — and climb into their beds. pandora gets up and stretches before planting herself back down closer to kihyun's legs. minhyuk's cat approaches his face and stares at him inquisitively. he raises a hand for her to sniff, then starts giving her head gentle strokes.

"she needs a name," he sighs.

"you'll think of something soon," kihyun murmurs in reply.

minhyuk hums. he's never been good with names. his cat is a fluffy brown thing with white paws and a very loud purr. he starts rattling off options at her. "choco? tofu? mud? boots? monkey? wanda?"

kihyun snorts. "wanda? really?"

"cocoa? my big fluffy cocoa bean?"

the cat blinks at him, seemingly unimpressed.

"okay, we'll keep thinking," he tells her. she headbutts his chin and curls up next to his pillow. 

"kihyunnie?"

"yeah?"

"i'm…" minhyuk can't say he's scared. kihyun knows he's scared and saying it again won't fix anything. "will you sing?" he asks instead.

kihyun does, softly and not very clearly, but it's enough to drown out the knowledge they're underwater and lull them to sleep.

~

they're working on essays for transfiguration during the break between classes and dinner when minhyuk finally goes stir crazy.

the first two weeks have been a blur. minhyuk has never been a poor performer where grades are concerned, but the subject matter is entirely different than anything he's ever been exposed to and it's a little frustrating. kihyun seems to enjoy the challenge, but minhyuk needs a break.

"let's go to the owlery," he proposes.

kihyun takes a moment to finish his sentence before looking up. "are you anywhere near done?"

"no, but i'm going crazy. i can't think. we haven't been up there yet and it's so nice out. please come with me?"

kihyun narrows his eyes. he looks from minhyuk's face — puppy dog eyes and pout fully activated — to his own essay and back again.

"stop looking at me like that."

"is that a yes?"

"give me ten minutes to finish this."

"i love you, yoo kihyun," minhyuk proclaims dramatically, one hand on his chest and wiping imaginary sweat from his brow with the other.

kihyun scrunches his nose. "shut up."

¤

minhyuk takes the time to write a short letter to his parents, so they at least have a reason to be at the owlery if anyone should ask. he mentions a spell giving him a hard time in charms, and tells them about his first attempt at flying — which, admittedly, didn't go great for most of their class so he doesn't feel that bad. he finishes addressing it just as kihyun finishes his essay.

they bundle up in their robes and green and silver scarves and head out through the common room. there are a couple of upperclassmen about, but no one blinks an eye at them.

the walk to the owlery requires a small journey outside. minhyuk can hear the lake bubbling, and wind rustles the few leaves that are left on the trees. the sun is just starting to set, painting the large, billowy clouds a softened shade of pink.

"it's so beautiful here," kihyun says.

minhyuk glances over at him. his hair is a mess, his tie is half undone under his robes, and his glasses are still perched on his nose from when he was writing earlier. minhyuk has no idea what he'd do here without him.

"yeah, it is," he agrees, beaming a smile in his friend's direction.

they reach the tower the owlery sits atop a minute later, and he suggests something he hopes won't end with one or both of them slipping and falling, but he knows kihyun can't turn down: "race you up the tower?"

~

november approaches quickly, bringing the promise of birthdays.

minhyuk and kihyun have shared every birthday they can remember, but this year is _different_. they’re away from home, and as the third draws closer, minhyuk’s energy drags a little more than usual.

on the second, after dinner, kihyun sneaks to yoongi’s room while minhyuk is showering.

a few days before, he had given the older boy a small bag of coins and a list of items that yoongi promised to pick up for him in hogsmeade. kihyun had asked him if he was friends with someone who could go without breaking the rules, but yoongi wouldn’t suggest anyone, just said he was going and could pick up the list himself. kihyun didn’t dare ask how.

yoongi waves him into his room with a grunt that barely passes as a greeting. he moves to the trunk at the end of his bed and opens it, digging around for a moment before pulling out a shopping bag.

"they were out of the ton-tongue toffees, so i got a few canary creams instead," yoongi explains, handing him the bag. "seems like they’ll be just as successful at temporarily shutting him up. your change is in there, too."

kihyun thanks him profusely, but he waves his hand in the air dismissively and assures him it’s not a big deal. "we’re having a party for him tomorrow afternoon in the common room, so make sure to get him back here after classes, yeah?"

"i will. i think he’s missing home, so it should be easy to get him to come right back to the dorms."

yoongi shifts his weight on his feet awkwardly. "the first birthday is always the hardest," he says after a moment of thought. "yours is soon, right?"

"in a few weeks. i’ve never been as close to my family as…" kihyun stares at a spot over yoongi’s left shoulder. "well. minhyuk is what makes my birthday special, i guess, not where we are or what we do."

yoongi nods firmly in understanding. "you should get back before he does."

"shoot, you’re right. thank you again, i really appreciate it."

"you’re welcome," yoongi says, smiling softly. "give pandora a scratch for me."

"will do.” kihyun ducks his head as he backs out of yoongi’s room, pulling the door shut as he goes.

he makes it back to the room before minhyuk does and carefully pulls everything out, hiding the items under his sheets. yoongi must have told the clerks at the shops that he was buying birthday presents, because everything is in gift bags or wrapped in festive paper and adorned with bows. pandora opens one eye and glares at him for rustling the fabric, but goes back to sleep soon after.

kihyun situates himself at the head of his bed. he pulls his history of magic textbook into his lap and tries to review some of his earlier reading, but there is an energy thrumming under his skin that he can’t quite identify and it’s difficult to focus.

minhyuk enters a minute or two later, topless with pajama bottoms hugging his hips and towel over his shoulder. his pants are too long, softly dragging against the floor when he walks, and his hair is still sopping wet. kihyun frowns.

"you’re going to get sick," he chastises.

"it’s only been a minute, i’ll be fine," minhyuk mutters, dragging his towel over his head. "but even if i _did_ get sick," he quips, "we’re surrounded by literal magic to fix me."

his eyes light up just a bit when he says it, apparently pleased by the idea of verbal sparring, and it’s so nice to see after watching him mope around that kihyun moves his textbook to the side and pats the area in front of him as an invitation. "doesn’t mean you should invite a cold, you idiot."

minhyuk pads his way over, eyeing kihyun suspiciously, and sits in front of him. kihyun takes the towel from him and drapes it over his head, then moves his fingers into his hair with the towel as a barrier, gently squeezing water from his hair in small sections.

it's not something they've done before, but it feels like the right thing to do to kihyun. it's familial, something his older brother used to do for him a few years ago, and hopefully comforting. 

after methodically moving over the top and sides of minhyuk's head in silence, kihyun uses a new section of towel to ruffle the shorter hair above his neck. he does it a little more forcefully than necessary, making minhyuk's head bounce around and drawing a surprised yelp from him.

kihyun apologizes, laughing when minhyuk turns with an exaggerated pout. "take this," he says, tossing the towel in minhyuk’s face.

"thanks."

minhyuk turns away from him again but doesn’t move from the bed, sitting with the towel in his lap and his head hung. kihyun reaches under his covers and pulls out the largest gift first, then reaches forward to place it next to minhyuk.

"happy birthday, minhyukkie," he offers, barely more than a whisper around some emotion he can’t identify except to know that it’s clogging his throat.

minhyuk twists suddenly, tossing the towel on the floor, and tackles kihyun. his long, spindly arms wrap around kihyun's shoulders and he's pushed back, pinned between the headboard and his friend's bare torso.

"you're crushing me and you don't even know what the gift is."

"doesn't matter," minhyuk mumbles into his neck. "just glad i have you."

"pick up your towel, you octopus."

¤

the weeks between their birthdays are mostly routine, but as kihyun's approaches, the itching under his skin increases. minhyuk is clinger than usual. he spends a lot of time playing himself in wizard's chess, bonding with his new set's pieces, but never lets kihyun go far — not that he would want to.

they make accidental friends with a gryffindor, hyungwon, in class one day. he almost seems disappointed in his house, like he wanted to be in slytherin, and the three of them get along well. he's more studious than minhyuk and makes a good homework partner for kihyun, at least.

they're hardly alone, but they keep to themselves. their fellow first years are all purebloods, more comfortable and used to this world than they are. they talk about quidditch and wizard card collections and what magical trinkets they want, none of which kihyun and minhyuk know much about.

the upperclassmen talk about girls in the common room or at meals, and that's a bad topic as well. he doesn't understand it, really. he knows about sex and love and how it's supposed to work, but he just doesn't see the appeal, especially after minhyuk's birthday.

not that he loves minhyuk. but he doesn't get why his classmates are all moony-eyed about the girls that assemble in packs and giggle and whisper to each other in the hallways. it all seems more annoying than interesting.

his mother would probably say he'll understand when he's older.

sometimes, minhyuk manages to pull him into a chess game. kihyun is a better player, but the pieces don't trust him, and he usually loses. they work together on homework and practice spells. minhyuk finally names his cat: nutmeg. yoongi asks him to hang out one afternoon, so they play exploding snap and talk about what muggle life is like and all kihyun can think about is if minhyuk is okay, even though he's just next door, so he excuses himself before too long and goes back to their room where he can keep an eye on him while pretending to work.

autumn has never filled him with such restless ennui, and kihyun doesn't know what to think about it.

¤

minhyuk has no way of beating kihyun when it comes to birthday gifts this year. luckily, he has _something_ — a nice quill that refills itself with erasable ink — because he was smart enough to pick it up when he was buying his own supplies in august. it's nowhere near as cool as the wizard's chess set or even the miscellaneous joke gifts and candy kihyun somehow got him, but minhyuk thinks it's not bad.

kihyun has never been one to get as excited about his birthday as minhyuk does. minhyuk had to emphatically plead with yoongi to get him to convince the rest of the house _not_ to have a surprise party on kihyun's behalf, and he hates when minhyuk is nicer than usual just because it happens to be the day he was born. november 22 is a day that is treated like any other.

mostly.

that morning, his prayers are answered and he wakes up first. both nutmeg and pandora crack their eyes open when he pushes his covers back, staring at him in confusion. he _never_ wakes up first.

he creeps to his trunk and fishes around under everything for the quill. once he's found it, he carefully shuts the lid and moves to kihyun's bed as stealthily as he can.

he puts the quill on kihyun's nightstand, stretches his arms above his head, and leaps. he lands sprawled on top of kihyun, like a starfish, and a few things happen very, very quickly: pandora is awake and biting minhyuk's pajamas at the ankle, kihyun is awake and pulling a fistful of minhyuk's hair while incoherently muttering words that minhyuk doesn't think are very nice, and his eyes tear up from laughing.

"i _hate_ you. i'm getting a new roommate," kihyun grumbles. "get _off_ me, you insufferable _ogre_. pandora, kill it."

"she's trying," minhyuk informs him. "don't you want your present?"

"is my present ten more minutes of sleep without you on top of me?"

"no."

"minhyuk, please."

minhyuk sighs, shakes his pajama leg free of pandora's teeth, and rolls to the side. he leaves his leg and arm wrapped around kihyun's middle. "happy birthday, kihyunnie."

kihyun groans, patience thoroughly tested, but removes a hand from under his head and blindly grasps at the covers until he finds minhyuk's wrist. he encircles it with his fingers and pulls it closer to his chest, then goes still and quiet.

minhyuk closes his eyes, warm and content, and starts counting to six hundred.

~

winter holidays come, with the boys spending more time apart at home than ever before. minhyuk was ecstatic about seeing as much of his parents as possible, and truthfully kihyun appreciated the break. he spent his time doing some extra reading for their classes and had a few conversations with yoongi about music and family — yoongi has an actual older brother in ravenclaw, apparently — and how much parents suck.

his mother awkwardly questioned him about girls, trying to make it seem casual, but the pressure was there behind her words: it's fine you have magic, but this doesn't absolve you from finding a nice wife and giving me grandchildren.

minhyuk finally stays over on the last night of their vacation, slotting himself back into kihyun's life like he hadn't been mostly missing for two whole weeks. he hangs off kihyun's bed like he had back during the summer, right after they found out they were wizards. kihyun imagines lines of tetris blocks disappearing around him, wiping the field clean with one perfectly orchestrated piece sliding into place.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hellooooo this is not how i expected to return after the comeback, but here we are. kismet is resting on the back burner for now and my life is messy as hell, but this crawled in my brain about a month ago and wouldn't let go. i have a definite plan and have already started on chapter four, so i _should_ be able to keep a somewhat regular update schedule. probably weekly, and mostly i'm posting chapters to motivate myself to keep writing sigh.
> 
> [this song](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LIPdS3j4EeM) is basically responsible for this fic, but i may put together a playlist later. title is basically ripped from a 1D song.
> 
> huge thank you to the people who read this first chapter when i wasn't sure if the concept was even worth it and gave me encouragement; i hope you know who you are. <3
> 
> thank you for reading i hope everyone had a good time kudos and comments are lovely and keep writers going when nothing else does, for real. [twt](http://twitter.com/fromzerohs) if you want to scream at me there.


	2. year two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> posting this early bc i want to haha. >.< hyungwon and the cats are the heroes of this entire year. sorry yoongi ily.

minhyuk paces the length of the baggage claim. he stops every time he reaches the sliding doors and waits next to kihyun's father for what feels like a year, but turns out to be less than a minute, based on the time on the information board. it's the end of august and hot as hell, but he has too much energy to stop.

kihyun has been gone, spending time with family in america, for a _month_.

minhyuk is going crazy. not as crazy as pandora, who has been a demon without him — killing everything resembling prey she could get her paws on and leaving it on minhyuk's pillow — but pretty darn crazy.

it feels like an eternity before the doors open and people start streaming out. minhyuk runs back to kihyun's father's side and tries to stand still, absentmindedly picking at the hem of his t-shirt.

"do you think it's this one?" minhyuk asks after a moment.

kihyun's father checks his watch and nods once in reply.

minhyuk stands on his toes, trying to see around people. it takes a minute but he finally spots kihyun's messenger bag in the crowd. he nearly yelps in excitement before remembering which adult he's with and swallowing it. it floats around his veins like a million tiny helium balloons, threatening to carry him out to the countryside and drop him in a field of cows.

kihyun is tanned and his hair is swept unceremoniously up and off his forehead, desperately in need of a trim, but revealing some of minhyuk's favorite moles. he looks… gorgeous, minhyuk fleetingly thinks, but then he's _there_ and has grown again and all the tiny balloons pop.

"you're _still_ taller! that's not fair!" he whispers urgently.

kihyun bows to his father before acknowledging minhyuk's existence with a shrug and a shy smile. he steps between them and they head for his flight's assigned baggage carousel as a group. minhyuk knocks his pinky against kihyun's palm as they walk. he grabs it for a second — long enough that minhyuk knows he'd say "i missed you, too" if he could.

~

returning to hogwarts as second years is infinitely less stressful than their first year.

minhyuk's mother takes them to diagon alley for the few things they need, but the list is much less extensive than it was the year before. she stays behind in the pub — mrs. yoo would be _horrified_ — deciding they'll be fine on their own and not wanting to immerse herself too deeply in the wizarding world, but not before giving them strict instructions to return in one hour whether they're done or not.

they run into hyungwon in the book shop and spend a few minutes catching up, but it's his last stop and their first so they eventually move on after agreeing to hang out as soon as they can at school.

they finish buying everything they need with twenty minutes left and wander into the animal shop, where kihyun gets distracted by a wall of toys. "do you think pandora and nutmeg would like these?" he asks, holding up a package of enchanted, furry mice.

"your gremlin daughter left real mice in my bed for the entire month, so she probably will. i don't know about nutmeg."

"i told you, she did that because she loves you!" kihyun counters.

minhyuk shakes his head. "you weren't there to see her face when i found them, ki," he says, serious.

kihyun looks at him and bursts into giggles. minhyuk snatches the package out of his hand and walks to the counter to pay.

~

they find yoongi on the train a few days later, secluded in his own compartment, staring out the window with a notebook on his lap. kihyun knocks on the door and he turns, surprised. he beckons them inside, shutting the book as they enter. they sit opposite him and minhyuk does his best to not look mildly annoyed as the other two talk about nerdy things that he has no interest in. yoongi mentions muggle studies as one of his new electives and kihyun's excitement is palpable and revolting.

after a few minutes, minhyuk spots the castle in the distance and breathes a sigh of relief.

"we're almost there," yoongi observes. "do you want to ride to the castle with me?"

"oh, that's right! min, no boats," kihyun says, patting his knee.

"no boats?"

yoongi hums. "no boats. thestrals," he says, solemn and a little cryptic.

minhyuk doesn't remember learning anything about thestrals. he looks at kihyun questioningly, but kihyun is staring at yoongi's lap where he wrings his fingers together.

"they're beautiful," yoongi continues. "at least i think so. most people can't see them, so don't worry."

"what do—"

"i'm sorry, yoongi," kihyun interrupts, squeezing minhyuk's leg in what he assumes is a warning to stop asking questions.

minhyuk seethes quietly, wanting nothing more than to be out of this stupid compartment. he hates when people talk around him, especially when one of those people is kihyun.

"it is what it is," he says, a wry smile on his lips. "i'm not the only one, but i'm the only slytherin. unless—"

kihyun shakes his head, answering for both of them.

"they like me." yoongi shrugs. "i always ride alone, that's why i asked. it will be less crowded."

the train comes to a stop and minhyuk leaps to his feet, ready to get the hell out of there. he'd walk to the castle at this point. he doesn't hate yoongi, but he's seriously annoyed by how he acts towards kihyun. kihyun is _his_ best friend, and yoongi should get his own.

he can feel kihyun's eyes on him as he slides open the door and steps out. he stands next to the train and waits for them to catch up, because as much as he wants to storm off, he has no idea where he's supposed to be going. yoongi does, apparently. yoongi is the best. minhyuk rolls his eyes at himself and stuffs his hands in his pockets.

when they finally make it to the carriages, yoongi pets the air in front of one while kihyun climbs in. minhyuk follows him, and yoongi joins after a moment. they ride in silence, minhyuk remaining confused and frustrated all the way to the castle. they arrive before most everyone else and yoongi waves goodbye as he heads inside.

kihyun latches onto minhyuk's arm and pulls him to a secluded corner just inside the castle doors.

"you can only see thestrals if you've seen someone die," he hisses. "i'm sorry you didn't know and i didn't want to blurt it out with him sitting there, but you didn't have to be a jerk."

minhyuk's eyes widen in surprise. there is a mixture of smugness, annoyance, and genuine concern on kihyun's face and minhyuk can't figure out which emotion is the dominant one.

"oh," he mumbles, defeated.

"yeah," kihyun sighs, then takes a second to scan minhyuk's face. "are you okay?"

minhyuk kicks the floor with the toe of his shoe. he's not sure how to answer that yet, but he feels foolish for getting as upset as he did.

"i'll apologize to him later, okay?" he offers, avoiding the question entirely.

another batch of students streams in, so kihyun just nods before reaching for minhyuk's hand and pulling him into the group heading for the great hall.

¤

that night, minhyuk goes to yoongi's room. the third year looks surprised to see him — or anyone, really — but recovers quickly and invites him in.

minhyuk stands just inside the closed door, not really wanting to stay longer than he needs to.

"i didn't know what being able to see them meant," he blurts. "i'm sorry i was weird on the train and in the carriage."

yoongi blinks at him slowly and it reminds minhyuk of nutmeg. the older boy turns away from him and minhyuk is about to let himself out when he finally speaks.

"do you like him, minhyuk?"

minhyuk's mouth goes dry and he scrambles for a coherent sentence. "he… i… he's been my best friend since we were in diapers."

yoongi turns to face him again and minhyuk feels like he's having an awful dream where he showed up to class naked.

"i see," he finally replies. "thank you for your apology," he continues, voice barely colder than normal, but minhyuk hears the new, subtle edge to it. "if you'll excuse me, i need to finish unpacking."

"of course," minhyuk quickly agrees, opening the door at his back. "good night."

minhyuk goes back to his room and swears to himself that he'll never be alone with yoongi again.

~

the first few months of their second year aren't _bad_ , but they're decidedly _different_.

minhyuk spends a lot of free time with hyungwon, and kihyun hangs out with yoongi more than he did during their first year. he seems to have realized minhyuk doesn't like him that much, at least, and refrains from bringing him up too often.

it's not long after winter break — spent at home with kihyun, like normal muggles and normal _them_ — that hyungwon tells minhyuk he might like boys the same way he likes girls, and minhyuk's kaleidoscopic worldview changes again.

"wait, you can do that?" minhyuk asks, lifting his head from where it rests in hyungwon's lap and pushing himself up on an elbow.

hyungwon shrugs. "why not?"

"i don't know," he answers truthfully. he's only thirteen and hasn't really thought about it before.

"i'm surprised you're surprised."

"what do you mean?"

hyungwon stares at him. "oh, merlin," he finally says, shaking his head. he pulls minhyuk's hand into his lap and starts massaging his palm. "min, you're in love with kihyun."

"what? no way," minhyuk protests. "definitely not."

"okay, i'm sorry," hyungwon apologizes. "i wasn't trying to freak you out, you guys are just… i shouldn't have assumed."

"we've been really close since we were little, but i've never…" minhyuk trails off. he's never _anything_ with anyone. there is a girl in hufflepuff he thinks is pretty, but he's never wanted to _kiss_ her or anything. he figured he was still too young, never that maybe… kihyun? nope. out of the question.

he's pulled out of his thoughts by hyungwon clearing his throat. "it's getting late, min. i'll see you in class tomorrow?"

"oh, yeah." minhyuk sits up and rolls his head to loosen his neck.

"you know i'm here for you, right?"

"thanks, wonnie. i'm here for you, too," minhyuk assures him with all the sincerity he can muster. he definitely wants to hear hyungwon talk about boys. or girls. "i just need to—"

"it's okay," he cuts minhyuk off, flashing him a bright smile. "i understand."

~

the tail end of winter brings nothing but tension between the boys, like a slowly stretching slingshot ready to send them careening into space. classes are increasingly difficult, they have to consider what electives they might want to choose for next year, and hanging over all of it is a glaring lack of communication.

minhyuk eventually had a long conversation with hyungwon and settled on believing he definitely hasn't experienced _any_ attraction to anyone yet, especially when compared to how hyungwon talks about a certain first year's dimples. the seed is planted in his head though, leaving him almost terrified to be alone with kihyun because what if things _change_? kihyun would be horrified. kihyun's parents would never look at minhyuk the same again.

so he backed away. kihyun was seemingly oblivious, happy to follow minhyuk's lead where levels of affection are concerned, as usual. minhyuk poured extra energy into his favorite subject instead: potions. it's tedious and precise and there's so much waiting. it's a very kihyun-like subject, not minhyuk's speed at all, but he loves it for some reason.

all in all, their relationship feels rocky and uncertain but the world keeps spinning and nothing _really_ changes, which is the most he figures he can hope for at this point.

~

as kihyun approaches his room, he hears a crash from inside. he rushes to open the door, half imagining minhyuk with his head split open after a terrible fall. instead, he finds nutmeg and pandora locked in a staring contest.

half of the stuff that used to be on their desks has been relocated to the floor. the fabric hanging from kihyun's bed is askew. his telescope is on the wrong side of his dresser. school books that were piled on minhyuk's trunk are thrown haphazardly on the ground instead.

nutmeg is on her back on minhyuk's desk, ears pinned and claws out and teeth bared. a low, constant growl can be heard from her. pandora stands over her, tail puffed like a marshmallow and back arched. it's unclear whether she was the aggressor or is simply the current winner, but kihyun wouldn't be shocked either way. the only indication they're aware of his presence is one of pandora's ears briefly twitching in the direction of the door.

kihyun slowly removes his wand from his back pocket and points it at the cats. pandora understands and mildly panics, but he speaks before she can react. " _immobulus_!"

the cats freeze, and kihyun forces an exhale. 

minhyuk walks in, then. he takes in the state of the room and the frozen cats for a moment before letting out a low whistle and closing the door.

"i didn't know what else to do," kihyun shrugs.

"what happened?"

"i don't know. i heard a crash and thought you… i opened the door and they were like that," kihyun explains, waving his hand in the direction of their pets.

"i didn't know nutmeg could make that face," minhyuk observes, cocking his head to the side.

kihyun can't help it — he laughs. it bubbles out of him, because the whole thing is so stupid. their cats have never fought and they pick now to tear the room apart, when minhyuk and kihyun have been distant for a reason that kihyun never even knew, he just let minhyuk float away without even trying. if there was ever a sign to get his shit together, this would probably be it.

minhyuk looks at him, shocked at his reaction, which only makes him laugh harder. minhyuk rolls his eyes and moves to start collecting his things that were thrown off his trunk. kihyun is wiping tears off his face when minhyuk yelps and flings a book he had just picked up across the room.

"are you—" kihyun starts, checking the area of the floor minhyuk is pointing at, but cutting himself off when he sees half a mouse. "oh."

"oh?! your demon made nutmeg an accomplice! my innocent baby is a blood-thirsty murderer now! willing to fight for her trophy! this is a _tragedy_!"

kihyun snorts at that, because cats are _carnivores_ , which finally makes minhyuk break. they both end up doubled over laughing, for the first time in months. minhyuk's giggles are something kihyun didn't know he missed, but now he has no idea how he went all winter without them.

~

they thaw along with the ground, more or less. spring comes, and they have a short break for easter. they spend most of their time in kihyun's room, debating electives and playing video games.

"care of magical creatures and ancient runes, i think," kihyun replies when minhyuk asks him what he wants to take. "arithmancy seems cool but i don't think it will be very helpful."

"no muggle studies?" he asks, surprised.

"it feels like we should get automatic credit for that one, being muggle-born and all."

"yeah," minhyuk agrees, "especially since they don't let us use magic at home." he sighs. "i think i'm going to take divination."

"you would," kihyun says, raising an eyebrow.

"excuse me, what does _that_ mean?" minhyuk pauses their game and stares him down, feigning offense.

"admit it," kihyun taunts, breaking into a grin, "you just want to know if you'll ever be taller than me."

minhyuk wastes no time before launching himself at kihyun, sending them both horizontal on the floor, as expected. kihyun miscalculates where his limbs are and his leg hits the bed frame hard when he topples over; it will probably bruise.

 _worth it_ , he thinks.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so... blah blah feelings haha the first year was very introductory and kinda boring bc they were still very smol and waiting to post this was killing me bc ... yes. it Begins. might post this sunday, might post next sunday, idk. depends on if i can get any writing done in the next two days. pls come scream at me if you want.
> 
> i have nothing useful to put in this a/n so i will link [this](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S5QCIWRiO3M) cover a.c.e's vocal line did of someone you loved bc it's been on repeat, and [this](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3UUJvMi4OSM) song by ben harper.


	3. year three

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> helloooo i hope everyone is having a better christmas than me lmao have an early year three bc i'm trapped at home with my cat and trying to avoid losing my mind!

"this is a terrible idea, minhyuk."

"this is a _great_ idea."

"if we get caught, they’re going to take away our hogsmeade privileges before we even have a chance to use them. do you know how long i had to listen to my parents talk about me finding a girl to date before they would sign the permission slip?"

minhyuk mounts his broom and kicks off from the ground, hovering at kihyun’s eye level. "we’d better not get caught, then," he whispers, grinning.

kihyun groans, but gets on his own broom and nods at minhyuk, signalling that he’ll follow.

they’ve been back for a week. there is a new kid in the house that has become fast friends with yoongi, and hyungwon has been hanging out with some second-year named jooheon. whether because their other friends are occupied or the summer break caused them to miss each other more than they do a few months into the school year, kihyun has been spending most of his free time with minhyuk.

after dinner, minhyuk somehow talked him into sneaking out with their new brooms. kihyun still isn’t sure why he went along with it, but here he is, flying behind minhyuk in the dark. 

he banks left, heading directly back to the castle, and kihyun grimaces. they skirt a tower, then climb a bit higher to avoid flying in front of the windows. minhyuk eventually slows when they reach the roof, somewhere high above the slytherin dungeon. minhyuk lands and holds his arms out, broom in one hand. he smiles proudly and all kihyun can do is shake his head.

"admit it, this is really cool," minhyuk chirps.

he had a small growth spurt over the summer and matches kihyun in height now. his limbs look a little less awkward, he has a little more confidence, and it's… something kihyun can't identify.

infuriating, maybe.

"it's pretty cool," he concedes, watching moonlight dance on the lake below them. a shiver runs through him and he pulls his robes tighter around himself. "cold up here, though."

minhyuk sets his broom down and steps next to him. he reaches out and grabs kihyun's scarf, readjusting it so it better covers his neck and the lower half of his face. his tongue pokes his between his teeth as he does it — a habit he's had since they were little that shows up when his actions are focused and deliberate. when he's satisfied with his work, he sits and pats the spot next to him.

kihyun is much warmer, and looking at the stars from up here doesn't seem like the worst idea. he sits, and minhyuk wraps himself around his arm, head on his shoulder. kihyun bites his lip, searching the sky for deneb and the rest of cygnus.

~

their first trip to hogsmeade is scheduled the same weekend as kihyun's birthday. minhyuk almost choked when they announced it at breakfast a couple of weeks ago. he couldn't have wished for better timing.

"is hyungwon coming?" kihyun asks when they're getting ready to leave.

"i think so, unless he decided to stay behind with jooheon."

kihyun makes a noise of acknowledgement but doesn't say anything.

"yoongi?" minhyuk asks, ignoring the way it makes his stomach knot.

"staying here with jimin," kihyun replies after a moment.

"they're close already, huh?"

"yeah, i guess," kihyun shrugs. "are you ready?"

"yep," minhyuk agrees, approaching kihyun's side and looping his arms around kihyun's elbow. "remember you promised we could go to honeydukes first."

"yeah, yeah," kihyun groans. "loading you up with sugar at the beginning of the weekend. what could go wrong?"

¤

honeydukes is packed, but minhyuk drags kihyun in anyway. they stay around the edges of the store, kihyun letting himself be pulled along and used as a shopping cart. he can't find the energy to complain when minhyuk's eyes light up every five seconds as he turns to show kihyun whatever new thing he found — shock-o-choc and ice mice and cauldron cakes and " _no-melt ice cream, ki!_ "

he rolls his eyes for good measure — minhyuk can't think he _approves_ of this — but his birthday tomorrow is a birthday he'll remember for a long time, he thinks.

it takes a while, but they make their way around to the register. minhyuk chats breezily with the woman behind the counter, who seems elated to have her store full of children. a minute later, minhyuk hands over an obscene amount of money in exchange for two bags of candy and they make their way back outside.

kihyun takes a deep breath, thankful to be out of the packed space. minhyuk grabs his elbow and steers him away from the door, setting a leisurely pace on the cobblestones.

"three broomsticks?" kihyun asks.

minhyuk stops and turns to face him, surprised. "i thought you wanted to go to the music shop."

"i do, but can you wait to dig into that candy?"

minhyuk pouts. "it's your birthday weekend, kihyunnie. of course i can wait."

¤

the music shop is dark and dusty and weird, but minhyuk loves it because kihyun is entranced the second he walks through the door. he moves slowly from instrument to instrument, carefully touching them with his fingertips, until he comes to a piano in the corner. it's old and beat up, but he sits, letting his hands hover over the keys.

"do you even remember how to play?" minhyuk asks. he's pretty sure it's been a few years since kihyun has touched a piano.

kihyun closes his eyes and nods.

minhyuk has no idea if it's appropriately tuned — maybe it's enchanted? — or if they're about to get kicked out, but kihyun looks so peaceful and at home sitting on the bench. minhyuk watches him take a steadying breath, and then his fingers fall onto the keys.

the notes carry through the empty shop, and minhyuk watches kihyun's face. his eyes stay shut, brows twitching in concentration. the music isn't anything minhyuk recognizes. it's slow and meandering and something about it makes him feel like a weight is pressing down on his chest and all at once, minhyuk realizes hyungwon was right.

¤

the bartender slides their butterbeers across the bar. minhyuk reaches for money in his pocket, but is stopped by kihyun's hand on his arm. he pulls his own money out and pays for them both instead.

minhyuk looks at where kihyun's hand lingers on his wrist. it's not a big deal, but to minhyuk in this moment, it feels like a big deal.

they find a table in the corner and sit. kihyun starts rambling about hippogriffs, but minhyuk can only watch the lights and shadows play on kihyun's face, making his nose sharper and softening his cheeks and deepening every wrinkle in his chin when he stops to think. his short fingers tap idly against his mug. they've held hands plenty of times in the past, but not recently, and it's all minhyuk wants to do right now.

he keeps talking and minhyuk keeps staring, idly popping crystallised pineapple into his mouth. snow melts into kihyun's bangs, the weight of it pushing them into his eyes, and minhyuk's fingers twitch at the idea of brushing the hair and water droplets away from his forehead.

 _kissing it away? that could work,_ he thinks.

minhyuk groans and leans back, thumping his head against the wall a bit harder than intended. 

"i _know_ , i couldn't believe she tried walking up without bowing," kihyun says. "a ravenclaw!" he adds, shaking his head.

~

minhyuk spends the weeks before christmas ignoring what he calls "the hogsmeade revelation."

it's a challenge, especially when he has dreams about waking up in kihyun's bed, curled up around him in the dark, with the curtains closed to protect them from the world. in his most recent one, kihyun woke up and turned in his arms with the softest smile on his face before nuzzling into his neck, leaving small kisses on his collarbone. minhyuk practically ran to the showers when the dream let go of him.

the forced distance of going home for the holiday break is a welcome reprieve.

on his last night at home, his mother makes him a belated birthday dinner and asks him how everything is going. he tells her about hogsmeade and the candy and the music shop and the tune kihyun played. his parents exchange a look, and his father leaves the table.

"what about your other friends?" his mother asks carefully.

"hyungwon is good. he’s spending a lot of time with a second-year he likes, but we’re both taking divination."

"what’s her name?"

"his name," minhyuk corrects her, wading into unfamiliar territory, "is jooheon."

his mother shows no sign of surprise, just nods eagerly, and minhyuk almost wants to cry.

"is he a gryffindor, too?" she asks.

"yeah. seems a lot like a hufflepuff to me, but the sorting hat does what it wants," he shrugs.

his mother folds her hands on the table in front of her and spins her wedding ring, thinking for a moment before speaking again. "your father and i want you to be happy, minhyuk. whatever that means. you know that, right?"

minhyuk squares his shoulders, almost involuntarily, fearing the tone of her words and what might be coming. "of course."

"okay," she smiles at him. "we love you, honey. and kihyun, too."

minhyuk breathes a sigh of relief and excuses himself to the bathroom. he splashes water on his face, which feels abnormally hot, and tries to tune out the white noise in his head.

_do they know?_

_how could they know?_

_i didn’t even know._

_… hyungwon knew._

he argues with himself in the bathroom for a minute, unsure whether he should tell his mother the truth. ultimately, he decides there’s nothing to tell. minhyuk hasn’t ruled out girls entirely, he just might want to kiss his best friend, but so what? kihyun only likes girls, probably; his family is too strict to allow anything else.

he’ll get over it, he figures.

~

he doesn’t.

he lives with it at school, but they have another hogsmeade weekend right after their holiday break. the village is coated in fresh, sparkly snow but all of the christmas decorations have come down and it looks so empty.

they go through the same routine as before. minhyuk gets a little less candy, but shares more of it with kihyun. kihyun drags him back to the music shop and plays the same tune on the piano as he had before. minhyuk swallows the weight in his throat.

"what is that?" he asks.

"just some song i like," kihyun replies, still playing. he sounds sad and minhyuk doesn’t know why. "you don’t know it."

"what’s it about?"

kihyun shrugs. he slows his playing and eventually pulls his hands away, putting them in his lap. 

minhyuk shifts on his feet. something about the tune is gut wrenching, still, but he’ll never figure out the song if kihyun doesn’t tell him, and kihyun clearly doesn’t want to tell him. not yet, at least, which leaves pushing aside his own stupid gay crisis and cheering him up as the only possible recourse minhyuk has.

he leans over his friend’s back and wraps his arms around his chest, squeezing him in an obnoxious hug. "butterbeer time, kiki. let’s go," minhyuk chirps.

kihyun turns his head and glares at him. "don’t call me that."

minhyuk lets his arms fall to his sides. "come _on_ , i need sustenance. and parchment, actually, can we—"

"yeah, yeah," kihyun agrees, closing the lid and standing from the piano bench. "come on," he says, leading the way back into the village streets.

minhyuk skips along behind him, slapping his feet on the cobblestones as loudly as possible just for good measure.

~

as soon as the last of the snow melts, the whole house is dragged outside for a slytherin quidditch tournament. the official school team members are split up and given different positions to avoid unfair advantages; minhyuk and kihyun's team gets the seeker, but she has to play as a beater.

minhyuk gets the other bat, kihyun gets a chaser spot, and their team is filled out by a few other upperclassmen and a first-year who actually knows how to fly.

there is a bit of waiting as they figure out brackets and get everyone sorted. eventually, they take the field against their first opponents: yoongi's team.

naturally, minhyuk wants to destroy them.

the balls are released, and kihyun manages to get the quaffle and starts heading for the hoops. minhyuk flies alongside him, scanning for bludgers.

kihyun is nearing the hoops when the seeker-turned-beater yells from somewhere behind minhyuk. he turns and spots a bludger flying straight for kihyun.

"ki, move left!" he yells, and prepares to move with him, bat raised and ready to smack the bludger away.

there is a resounding _crack_ , and everything goes black.

¤

"— you jerk. _minhyukkie._ "

minhyuk groans. everything hurts and he's not sure where he is but that's definitely kihyun's voice cutting through the fog.

he reaches around with a hand and finds some part of kihyun, then halfheartedly smacks at him. "stop _yelling_ ," he pleads. "my head hurts."

kihyun grabs his fingers and sets his hand back at his side, but doesn't let go. "getting hit with a bludger will do that, idiot," he says.

his tone lacks any venom. on the contrary, he almost sounds scared. minhyuk cracks his eyes open and finds kihyun's face painted with concern.

"i'll be fine, ki," he tells him, squeezing his fingers. "remember when… fell off—"

"the playground equipment," kihyun interjects. "right on your head. your blood ruined my favorite shirt." he runs his thumb absentmindedly across minhyuk's knuckles as he talks. "i still haven't forgiven you. neither has your nose."

"my nose is perfect," minhyuk argues, wrinkling it.

kihyun's mouth twitches, but he doesn't shoot back. he rubs his spare hand over his face instead. "i should get madam pomfrey," he whispers after a moment, "she fixed your face but you were out for like twenty minutes. she wanted to know when you woke up."

"i'm sorry," minhyuk offers lamely. he doesn't remember what happened but he's sure it was probably his fault.

kihyun shakes his head. "you have nothing to be sorry for, just promise me you'll never play quidditch as a beater ever again."

minhyuk shrugs. he's tired and his eyelids are heavy and his mouth is dry. he thinks going back to sleep might be nice. "i love you, ki. best friend. no beatering for minhyuk. thanks for staying with me. i'm tired," he rambles, right on the edge of consciousness.

a hand carefully pushes his hair away from his forehead, and minhyuk feels a pair of lips briefly touch his temple before he drifts off again. it's nice, he thinks.

¤

kihyun is kicked out of the hospital wing eventually and sent to their room for the night. nutmeg paces while he changes his clothes, looking from him to the door and back again, waiting for minhyuk. he feels terrible.

"he'll be back tomorrow, 'meggie," he tells her. "he's with madam pomfrey."

she blinks at him, then hops on minhyuk's empty bed and curls up on his pillow.

kihyun climbs between his sheets and finally lets the stress of the day drain out of his body, tears included.

~

with spring comes finals. kihyun wanted peace and quiet to study runes, so minhyuk ventured to the gryffindor dorms. hyungwon meets him outside and escorts him to his room.

"how's jooheon?" minhyuk asks when they're alone, and he swears hyungwon _blushes_.

"he's good," he replies, trying to keep his voice as uninterested as possible. minhyuk thinks it's adorable. "he's at quidditch practice, and i really do need help with this divination paper."

minhyuk drops his bag and sits on hyungwon’s bed. "i think you were right," he announces, apropos of nothing.

hyungwon looks at him, confused. "about what?"

"kihyun."

hyungwon nods slow in understanding, then sits at his desk, bringing his knees to his chest and resting his arms around his shins. "what happened?"

minhyuk sighs. "his birthday and hogsmeade and then when that bludger hit me… i don’t know," he explains, staring at his hands in his lap. "i don't know if it's him or boys or just… it's confusing."

"kiss me," hyungwon deadpans.

"what?"

"i'm a boy and not kihyun. seems like it could answer some questions."

"but joo—"

"isn't my boyfriend," hyungwon shrugs.

"you’re serious."

hyungwon holds his hands up in surrender. "you don’t have to, minhyuk. we can work on our papers. i thought it might help, that’s all."

minhyuk definitely hasn’t kissed anyone before. the only person he wants to kiss is kihyun. but in terms of figuring out if he’s a little gay, maybe this makes sense? or is the fact that he’s not immediately repulsed by the idea enough to answer the question? what _was_ the question again?

minhyuk flings himself onto his back, shoves hyungwon’s pillow over his face, and screams.

when he sits up again, hyungwon is chewing his lip like he’s trying not to laugh. "if you’re this messed up about the idea of kissing me…"

"it’s not the boy thing, it’s the…" minhyuk waves his hands aimlessly, trying to find the words he wants. " _you_ thing, sorry," he finishes, frowning.

hyungwon gasps. "lee minhyuk, are you saying i’m not hot?" he asks, hand over his heart like he’s been mortally wounded.

"i guess so," minhyuk shrugs. "papers. we should work on our papers."

hyungwon tucks his legs under himself and turns to face his desk. "well, my offer stands for at least another year or two."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is early it wasn't supposed to be early but i just needed to do something to make myself happy today so. kihyun was playing [the luckiest](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4yiIyddZX98) by ben folds. both times, obviously. it'll break your heart yw. cygnus also has definite meaning if you're a mythology nerd like me. poor ki.
> 
> year four is shaping up to be a behemoth-sized drama hellscape so uh. look forward to that i guess. a friend pointed out GOF was also a behemoth-sized drama hellscape so really my pacing is just as horrible as jkr's and i guess i have to live with that.


	4. year four

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hahahalhdlfkjalkdjflkd

kihyun wakes up on his plane home forty minutes before the scheduled landing. he pulls out his ancient runes textbook and attempts to read, but he's too anxious. he spent a month in america again, and he misses minhyuk more than he did a couple years ago. kihyun considers it a small blessing that minhyuk's mother is picking him up, so he doesn't have to pretend he didn't feel like a piece of himself was left behind in england for the last thirty days.

it's odd. he knew their relationship was atypical, but watching people in america, and how his family reacted when he brought minhyuk up again and again, and how they tried to set him up with girls… it was hard. the time difference made it impossible to talk more than a few times, and kihyun spent a lot of time wishing everything was a little less complicated.

with a heavy sigh, he unbuckles his seatbelt. he steps around his neighbors into the aisle, then makes his way to the tiny restroom at the front of the cabin. he empties his bladder, washes his hands, and slowly wanders back to his seat, stretching his arms over his head as he goes. he manages to make it back into his seat just as the seatbelt light turns on and a flight attendant with an american accent tells the plane they're making final preparations for landing.

kihyun closes his eyes. he'll be back on the ground with minhyuk soon. they'll be back to school in a week. everything can go back to normal, or at least their definition of it.

¤

minhyuk waits patiently next to his mother, because if minhyuk paces, he rationalizes, she may assume he's nervous or in love with his best friend or something equally embarrassing, like he's lost control of his bladder just months shy of his fifteenth birthday.

he spots kihyun in the first batch of people filtering out of the doors and instantly loses all sense of calm. his seat was in the middle of the plane, minhyuk knows. to make it through immigration in the first group, he must've run, like he is now—

minhyuk's air is forced out of his lungs by a kihyun colliding with him. arms wrap around his neck and minhyuk should enjoy this moment of physical affection, but all he can think about is how his chin doesn't quite rest where it should.

"oh my god, i'm _taller_ than you! _finally_!" 

minhyuk expects kihyun to smack him, or make some kind of joke, but all he does is hug minhyuk even tighter.

"shut up. i missed you so much," he whispers, burying his face between his arm and the side of minhyuk's head.

it's weird and unlike him and minhyuk hopes his heart isn't as loud as it sounds in his own ears. he's worried, though. what the hell happened in america?

"boys," minhyuk's mother hesitates.

minhyuk looks over and locks eyes with her. she's smiling, barely, and minhyuk thinks that while she may not have known for sure last winter, she definitely knows now.

"come on, let's get your bag and go home," minhyuk mumbles, loosening his arms. "pandora misses you."

kihyun pulls away, eyes glistening, and minhyuk worries.

~

"so your parents pay some company for electricity when you could just… kihyun?"

"i'm gay."

yoongi tilts his head, sets his book on his bed, then pulls his knees to his chest and rests his forearms on his knees.

kihyun blows air out through pursed lips and shakes his hands where they hang at his sides. "feels good to say."

it's the first week of school and minhyuk is in the shower. kihyun had a huge fight with his parents when he got home from america, and the last two weeks have been a mess. he hasn't been able to look at minhyuk without feeling like he's being stabbed in the chest. yoongi is the only one he's told — about the fight, and now, his sexuality.

"you haven't told minhyuk?"

"i can't."

"why not?"

"it would change things."

yoongi rolls his eyes. "you're an idiot."

"thanks, that's helpful," kihyun snipes.

yoongi stands and crosses the room, stopping in front of him. he reaches out and grabs one of kihyun's hands.

"i had a huge crush on you a couple of years ago, you know," he says, and kihyun feels the stabbing in his chest again. "but then i realized minhyuk was it for you."

"and jimin showed up," kihyun adds, ignoring the statement about minhyuk entirely.

"and jiminie showed up, yeah. but my point is change isn't a bad thing. your parents are difficult, but you can deal with that, especially if you have him by your side. something has to change. you're not happy like this, kihyun."

"but what if—"

yoongi shakes his head. "he's in love with you, shortstack."

"we're the same height, you garden gnome."

"and minhyuk is taller than us both. he loves you."

kihyun groans, backing to yoongi's desk chair to sit down. yoongi follows, still hanging onto his hand, and leans on the desk.

"what do i do?"

"tell him what you told me and kiss him and live happily ever after."

"i knew you were a closeted romantic," kihyun quips. "i've never…" he trails off.

"close your eyes."

kihyun shouldn't, for a million reasons, but he does. in the seconds after, when he hears the shuffling of fabric that comes from yoongi moving, he rationalizes that he should _know_ , before he tries anything with minhyuk. he feels the heat from yoongi's body, then lips press against his, closed but soft and willing. warmth slams into his abdomen. it feels wrong and he pulls back almost immediately. he puts a hand on yoongi's chest, pushing him upright and leaping up from his seat.

"shit," he mutters around a fingernail, pacing the center of the room. "sorry, not you, just… shit."

yoongi sighs. "tell him. i never want to do that again."

"thanks, i think," kihyun mumbles.

"maybe don't tell him i kissed you, though. he scares me."

¤

minhyuk is in bed reading when kihyun gets back, with nutmeg curled up near his pillow asleep.

"hey, how's yoongi?" he asks, and kihyun's chest tightens again. he should just tell him everything now, but he knows yoongi isn't minhyuk's favorite person, even if he tries to be supportive, so he doesn't.

"he's okay," kihyun answers, busying himself with collecting his pajamas and toiletries. "going to shower."

"okay," minhyuk replies. kihyun hears the crinkling of pages, then some shuffling of bedding before minhyuk speaks again. "i'm going to sleep, so be quiet when you come back."

to kihyun, it sounds like his words are forced through a clenched jaw, like he knows something isn't being said but he doesn't want to argue about it.

it’s exhausting.

"alright. good night, i guess," kihyun says, backing out of their door and into the hallway.

in the shower, his mind races and he hurries through his routine. he rinses the shampoo out of his hair and is ready to get out, but instead of turning the water off, he increases the temperature. he leans against the wall so the water cascades down his back and takes a few deep breaths in a last-ditch effort to calm down.

how do you tell your best friend you're in love with him?

how do you tell your parents you don't want the idyllic, heteronormative life with two-and-a-half biological children they've worked to give you?

how do you do all this _and_ prepare enough to ace your o.w.l.s?

~

the end of september comes and kihyun still hasn’t told minhyuk what happened over the summer. they’re so busy with classwork that he barely has time to worry, but it feels like the drifting that happened in their second year. it’s not great, but something he’s learned over the years is that their friendship ebbs and flows, so he tries his best to forget about what kihyun _isn’t_ telling him and to focus on what he _is_. he aims for being supportive in the moment instead of stressing him out by trying to drag details out of him that he isn’t ready to talk about.

it’s _hard_.

especially when kihyun is clearly upset and all minhyuk wants to do is hold him like he would when they were little kids and kihyun got angry at him for stealing a toy he wasn’t done playing with yet. it worked then and minhyuk thinks it would work now, even though he’s pretty sure he hasn’t done anything wrong, but there’s that tiny sliver of doubt that stops him every time.

when hyungwon asks if he can come review minhyuk’s potion notes and hang out with their cats to destress after dinner one night, he’s thrilled with the opportunity to have some other company. minhyuk walks with him to the slytherin dungeon and through the dorms. when he opens the door to his room, hyungwon raises an eyebrow.

"where’s your other half?" he asks.

"library, i think," minhyuk replies, indifferent. he flops onto his bed like a fish and sighs. "i’ve barely seen him this week and even when i do it's like i don't know how to talk to him anymore."

"he's been really quiet in class. he went overseas during the summer, right?" hyungwon asks.

"yeah. i think something happened but he’s not telling me about it."

hyungwon’s breath catches in surprise. minhyuk looks over and finds him lounging in their armchair with pandora kneading at his lap. hyungwon looks very pleased.

minhyuk slowly sits up. "she… oh my god, i wish i had a camera," he whispers, stunned. "ki’s head would explode."

hyungwon raises a hand for pandora to sniff and she allows him to pet her. he scratches his fingertips into the fur under her chin and she raises her head to give him better access.

after a moment of silence between them — spent watching kihyun's normally antisocial cat transform into a purring beast of affection — hyungwon asks him another question. "have you considered telling him you care about him and you're worried?"

"i still don't know how _much_ i care."

"not sure how that's relevant, but you mean you're still not sure you like boys," hyungwon comments, carefully stroking one of pandora's ears.

minhyuk chews his lip. "what if it's just because he's there?"

"possible, but as someone on the outside watching you two, i don't think that's the case. i'm here, too, and you turned me down." hyungwon pauses to murmur calming words to pandora before moving his hand to her head and neck. "you want to know what i really think?"

minhyuk gives him a slight nod.

"i think you would like boys, you're just lucky enough to have found the only one that matters before you realized it was an option, so no one else even registers."

minhyuk wants to object. he opens his mouth to object, but no words come out. he deflates and falls back on his bed again. he counts stars on the ceiling — enchanted equivalents of those glow-in-the-dark plastic things, obtained as a late present for kihyun's birthday last year — and gets to 47 before his mind is made up.

"wonnie, how's jooheon?"

"still not my boyfriend," hyungwon answers, without missing a beat. "unless you weren't only asking because you want to kiss me, in which case he's doing great."

"i want to make sure it's more than me being confused about a friend, i guess?"

"look, i will if you really want to because i've definitely thought about it, but that's a dumb reason. we're friends, but you aren't confused about me. you're tormented over the idea of one kiss unless it's with him. he's _different_ , minhyuk."

minhyuk sighs and rolls off his bed to his feet. he opens his trunk and searches for his potions notes from the past years. hyungwon is right. hyungwon is usually right. it's horribly annoying.

"i don't want you to regret me being your first kiss," hyungwon offers, voice laced with sympathy. "i wish jooheon… it'd be nice to have everything be new for me, too. i don't want to take that away from you guys."

minhyuk finally finds the notes he was looking for, along with a random cat toy that pandora takes an interest in over hyungwon's ministrations. 

"i know it's scary," hyungwon continues, "but i really don't see it going badly if you tell him the truth."

minhyuk stands, holding the notes up victoriously. "i know you're probably right, but i don't know if i could handle it if you're not," he says, taking a few steps to deliver them.

"what is it muggles say? nothing attempted, nothing obtained?" hyungwon tries, wrinkling his forehead in thought, and minhyuk grins.

"close enough. thanks, wonnie."

hyungwon shakes his head. "you're saving me with these potions notes _and_ i get to be around your cats. it's the least i can do."

~

autumn drags its feet. there are no hogsmeade trips scheduled until after christmas, professors pile more work on them than ever before, and minhyuk can't find a good time to talk to kihyun. he tries, but the serious moments they have always feel wrong or rushed and he doesn't want to screw it up.

the closest he comes is in the showers one night between their birthdays, but he realized at the last second that the setting wasn’t ideal for telling the person he was with that he wanted to emotionally and physically jump him. clothes, he supposes, are necessary for the conversation.

he thought kihyun's birthday might have been his chance, too. he woke him up that morning by climbing into his bed and pressing cold hands against his back. _he_ thought it was funny, but kihyun wasn't even a little amused. he didn't talk to him the whole day, not until they were going to bed and minhyuk apologized again. 

"just tell him in class or something so he can’t run away," hyungwon had advised, about a week ago during one of their impromptu divination study sessions. minhyuk had rolled his eyes and kicked him out of his room.

he’s confident that now that he’s looking for it, he’ll find a moment that works eventually.

~

kihyun would’ve been happy staying at hogwarts for the christmas break, if he’s honest, but he thought about it from every angle and decided he couldn’t get out of going home. his parents would’ve asked too many questions and minhyuk would’ve stayed at the castle with him, then _he_ would’ve asked too many questions, on top of whining about missing his own parents. kihyun had to go home for minhyuk, he rationalized, and somehow that made it easier, but when his parents start telling him about his father's boss’s daughter at the dinner table on christmas eve, he wants to bury a fork in his leg.

he really hoped after he got home in august and told them he didn’t want to be set up with anyone anymore, they’d back off for one measly holiday break. apparently, that was too much to hope for.

kihyun curls his toes under the table and chews deliberately so he doesn’t say or do something he’ll regret, like he hates all girls — not just the boring ones they try to set him up with — and loves minhyuk, or turn his parents into teacups.

after another five minutes of eating, he excuses himself to wash his plate and disappears to minhyuk’s house.

¤

kihyun runs next door without a jacket and his shoes half on his feet. he rings the doorbell and stands on the porch with his arms crossed, shivering.

minhyuk finally answers the door, takes one look at him, and frowns.

kihyun sighs and watches his breath float away in wisps in front of his face. "can we talk?"

minhyuk is momentarily stunned, but turns and starts heading to his bedroom. "kihyun is here!" he calls, "we’re going upstairs!"

nutmeg is sleeping on minhyuk’s bed. he sits next to her. he’s dressed in jeans and an oversized cardigan — muggle clothes — and it’s overwhelming, somehow.

"you look weird," kihyun says, and minhyuk narrows his eyes at him. "in muggle clothes, i mean. we spend so much time in robes at school that i forget what you look like in jeans and t-shirts and…" kihyun sighs. "it doesn’t matter."

minhyuk stares at him and he sits on the floor next to his feet. he pulls his knees to his chest and stares at his cuticles, unsure where to start or where to go or what he’s doing here.

"my entire family keeps trying to set me up with girls. muggle girls, at that. they have no respect for the fact that i might want to live my life as a wizard, i guess," kihyun starts rambling, everything that has been rattling around in his head for the last four months suddenly making a mad dash to escape his mouth. "my parents were telling me about my father’s boss’s daughter at dinner tonight and i wanted to turn them into teacups, min."

"maybe you should’ve," minhyuk mutters.

"my trip last summer was miserable. so many bad pseudo-dates with spoiled americans. they didn’t even warn me before i went over there, it was a complete ambush. any time i talked about you, my family rolled their eyes. i missed you so much, you have no idea."

"i missed you, too. always do," minhyuk says, knocking kihyun’s shoulder gently with his toes.

they sit in silence for a moment while kihyun reorganizes his thoughts. minhyuk is loud and obnoxious so much of the time, but to his credit, he reads kihyun like a book and knows when to be a calming presence. kihyun appreciates it so much.

"i had a huge fight with my parents when i went home that day," he continues. "they threatened to pull me out of hogwarts and move me to america. their only concern is me taking over my father’s business and marrying someone acceptable. they don’t even care that i’m _magic_ and shouldn’t be part of their society at all."

"are they aware we don’t actually live in k—"

kihyun turns his head and shoots minhyuk a look, stopping him.

"i told them i’m not interested in dating yet. i asked them to give me a year or two. then they started in on how much time i spend with you, and i lost it. no one respects how important you are to me, because…" kihyun trails off and he thinks he hears minhyuk’s breath catch but he’s not sure. "i wanted to come over here and tell you right away, but that would only give them more fuel. i’ve felt horrible not telling you, but i didn’t know how, especially after we were back at school."

"i mean. you just did?" minhyuk replies, somewhere between a statement and a question. kihyun can imagine the shrug that accompanies it without looking at him.

"you’re not freaking out like i thought you would," he says.

"your parents like to try to control your life, but they always come around in the end, kihyunnie."

"maybe not this time," kihyun mumbles.

"you’re a wizard. i guess i feel like you have the upper hand here. i’m not sure why you didn’t tell me sooner, but."

kihyun sighs, well aware that this seems like less of a big deal because he’s leaving out the big, gay linchpin of it all, but he feels lighter having told minhyuk some of it, at least. "i’m just tired of us being distant. this huge thing happened and you didn’t know and it was making everything weird and i miss you. plus i could really use your potions notes."

minhyuk moves slowly to avoid disturbing nutmeg, pulling his legs under and behind himself so he’s on his stomach. he folds his hands on his bed next to kihyun’s head and rests his cheek on them. "you’re going to have to fight hyungwon for them," he mutters, words muffled by his duvet.

kihyun forces an exhale and leans his head back to rest on the bed, closing his eyes. "he’s a bean pole. i can take him."

eventually, he knows, he needs to tell minhyuk the rest. for now, his bedroom is a warm, welcomed break from the tension at home.

"mum made trifle," minhyuk tells him.

kihyun straightens his neck. "why didn’t you tell me that when i got here?" he asks, stretching his legs in front of him before standing.

"you were shivering on my porch and asked if we could talk!" minhyuk retorts, energy returning. "i thought you were dying!"

kihyun rolls his eyes. minhyuk’s legs are folded against the wall, like usual. "come on, you tetris block," he says, holding out his hand. "let’s let nutmeg sleep."

~

they fall together again easily after christmas, just like minhyuk knew they would eventually, as predictably as the moon controlling the tides. kihyun still spends too much time in the library, but he starts eating in the great hall with minhyuk again and jokes around more than he did at the beginning of the year. there are times when it’s obvious to minhyuk that he’s worried, and he gets cranky on tuesdays when he gets his weekly letter from his parents, but now that minhyuk knows what kihyun is dealing with, it’s easier to help keep his mood up.

the downside of all of this is that minhyuk’s gay crisis has doubled in size.

they have their first hogsmeade trip of the year at the end of january. hyungwon comes with them, this time, because jooheon has classwork and quidditch practice. he spends a lot of time over butterbeer pouting about the gryffindor quidditch captain destroying his plans for a late birthday celebration with his favorite underclassman.

"turn his broom into a mouse and feed it to pandora," kihyun suggests.

hyungwon sighs. "tempting, but she loves me too much already."

a look of confusion crosses kihyun’s face.

"when wonnie came to get my potions notes a few months ago," minhyuk recounts, "pandora claimed his lap and turned into a purring, kneading beast. it was sweet."

"huh," kihyun shrugs. "so she just hates you, then. that’s good to know."

"she’s jealous and thinks i’m going to—" minhyuk starts, not quite thinking, until a foot kicks him under the table. "—eat all of the cat treats."

kihyun blinks at him.

hyungwon calls for more butterbeer and launches into a story about jooheon running into a ravenclaw transfer student making out with the much older hufflepuff quidditch captain in the changing room that may or may not be entirely fictional.

minhyuk makes a mental note to thank him, later.

~

easter gets closer, and kihyun gets anxious. going home is not something he wants to do, even for a long weekend. when they start covering calming draughts in potions, the temptation to make one on his own is too strong to ignore.

he shouldn’t. he should talk to madam pomfrey, or even ask minhyuk, who is frighteningly proficient at potion-making, but he’d have to explain his situation to madam pomfrey and he doesn’t want to inconvenience his friend, so he makes his own.

when a fever leaves him shivering under layers of blankets and he can’t keep any food or water down, he realizes he made a mistake.

pandora sits on his nightstand and judges him.

"i know, ‘dora," he slurs. "i’m an idiot."

he peels back his covers and rolls out of bed. he changes into cooler clothes, leaving his robes, jeans and hoodie in a pile in the middle of the floor because bending over sounds exceedingly risky.

minhyuk is off with hyungwon working on a divination assignment. he has no idea when he’s going to be back, but he’s worried he might pass out. he could go knock on yoongi’s door, but he stubbornly wants minhyuk.

the room starts to spin and he makes a decision. he moves to the door and opens it, calling to pandora. she hops off his nightstand and circles his feet. "go find min. i think he’s in the library with hyungwonnie. get him to come back."

she puts her front feet against his leg and stretches upwards, then headbutts his knee before galloping down the hall. hopefully, kihyun thinks, someone will let her out of the common room. he doesn’t have time to worry about it before his body climbs back into bed and his eyes shut.

¤

when kihyun wakes again, there’s a weight next to him that seems too heavy to be his cat, which means…

"you _absolute idiot._ "

"she found you," kihyun mumbles.

"i’m going to kill you myself if this bad potion doesn’t do it first," minhyuk tells him, pushing his hair out of the way and draping a cool cloth across his forehead. "i should kill you anyway. why didn’t you ask me to make something for you?"

"didn’t want to bother you," kihyun mutters.

"you _absolute idiot._ "

"you already said that."

"i’m going to say it at least a few more times, you absolute idiot," minhyuk retorts. "you should go to madam pomfrey."

"no," kihyun panics, darting a hand out from under the covers to grab minhyuk’s wrist. "i don’t think i messed up that bad. i feel calmer," he says, taking a moment to lick his lips, which feel dry and like maybe they’re not quite attached to his face. "fever and nausea. can’t food or water," he explains.

"you probably didn’t grind up the bloodroot enough," minhyuk sighs. "i can’t believe you."

"thanks for coming," kihyun whispers.

"i’ve never heard pandora meow as loudly as she did when she found us, ki. _in the library._ i thought madam pince was going to have a stroke. i had no choice."

"sorry," kihyun offers, pouting. "thought about going to yoongi, but i wanted you."

minhyuk gets up and moves to his trunk. he comes back a moment later with a vial. "giving you sleeping draught, you absolute idiot. you’re delirious and i don’t want to listen to you," he says calmly, helping kihyun into a sitting position. he undoes the stopper and helps kihyun drink it. "i’ll be right here when you wake up, and hopefully you’ll feel a little better."

kihyun settles back into bed and minhyuk replaces the cloth on his forehead before settling next to him with the divination work he was trying to do with hyungwon. he can feel the sleeping draught start working almost immediately and closes his eyes. he’s right on the edge of sleep when he hears something he thinks he wasn't supposed to: minhyuk, under his breath, quietly saying "you’re an idiot, but i love you anyway."

it sounds heavier than usual. he's said it before, but something about this time… maybe everything will be okay, kihyun thinks, before drifting off.

¤

kihyun sleeps through the night and well into the next day.

minhyuk told yoongi what happened, only so he could have someone to watch kihyun when he had to step out for a few minutes to get dinner and breakfast. nutmeg curls up between his legs where he sits on kihyun’s bed, offering emotional support. pandora stays vigilant on kihyun’s nightstand, watching him sleep and glaring every once in a while at minhyuk.

"it's for his own good," he tells her. "his fever is gone, so he'll be fine."

she blinks at him and licks her lips before focusing again on kihyun’s face. _unbelievable_ , he thinks. he knew pandora was loyal, but her behavior is surprising anyway. he needs to remember to tell kihyun about it when he wakes up.

he finishes his divination paper and trades it for old defense against the dark arts notes, because he has nothing better to do.

"i know you worry about me studying enough for my o.w.l.s," he muses out loud at the unconscious moron in bed next to him, "but this was a lame way to rope me into it."

kihyun snores lightly, almost like he heard him. minhyuk pushes his hair back and checks his temperature again with the back of his hand — normal — before rolling his eyes and turning his attention back to his notes.

~

"let’s stay here for easter," minhyuk suggests a week later in the middle of dinner. "we need to study anyway. it’s not worth going home."

"you’d be okay with that?" kihyun asks, surprised.

"yeah, why not?" minhyuk asks, shoveling more food into his mouth.

kihyun frowns. "i know you miss your parents. i don’t want you to stay because you think i can’t handle mine."

"that might’ve been the case a few years ago, but we’re fifteen, ki. we’ve been doing this for four years. i can live without seeing them for one easter break."

kihyun considers it. after the calming draught debacle, minhyuk has been extra supportive, trying to keep everything light and his mood elevated. he definitely doesn’t want to go home, and minhyuk is probably right that their parents would let it slide because it’s a short break. his parents _might_ support it if studying is his excuse. they complain about his magic, but they hate the idea of him getting poor grades more than him possessing a wand.

"worth a shot, i guess," kihyun decides.

after they finish eating, they write letters to their parents in their room before bundling up and heading back out to the owlery.

they’re crossing the grounds in front of the lake, the sun setting behind the trees, when kihyun feels a hand take his and start swinging his arm. he doesn’t pull away or stop it, but shoots minhyuk a look that makes him laugh. it’s beautiful. _he’s_ beautiful, and kihyun hears his voice in his head.

_"you’re an idiot, but i love you anyway."_

_"i love you, ki. best friend. no beatering for minhyuk. thanks for staying with me. i'm tired."_

_"i love you, yoo kihyun."_

"min, stop," he says, tugging on his hand.

minhyuk lets go, but keeps moving towards the owlery.

"no, _stop_ ," he tries again.

minhyuk pauses, turning back to face him. "what’s up?" he asks, concern etched on his face.

kihyun kicks the toe of his shoe into the grass and takes a deep breath. "i didn’t tell you everything about why i don’t want to go home," kihyun says.

"it’s really cold, can we do this when we get back to our room?"

"i’m gay."

minhyuk’s mouth opens slightly, just enough for kihyun to register the surprise, though he hides it well. he takes one beat too long before he repeats himself, "it’s really cold, can we do this when we get back to our room?"

"yeah, whatever," kihyun mumbles.

"great," minhyuk chirps, grabbing his hand again. he turns them around to head back the way they came.

"um, min? owlery?"

minhyuk pulls them into an alcove. "shut up. you’re an idiot," he says. "we’ll go to the owlery tomorrow. we’re going back to our room to talk and hopefully make out because i’m in love with you and i’m so tired of pretending i’m not, kihyun."

he delivers his words quickly, like he’s either thought about this speech a lot or is just that confident in what he wants to say, and kihyun’s brain short circuits a bit.

"you— shit," kihyun tries, and fails.

"cute," minhyuk says, smiling softly. "can we go now?"

"no," kihyun replies.

"no?" minhyuk asks, tilting his head like pandora sometimes does when she doesn’t like the answer kihyun gives her.

kihyun shakes his head.

"why not?" minhyuk asks.

kihyun has no idea where the courage comes from, but he rallies it from somewhere and leans forward on his toes to press his lips against minhyuk’s. warmth slams into his abdomen again, but it feels right this time. he puts a hand on minhyuk’s chest and curls his fingers into his robes, pulling him down to keep their lips connected as he drops off his toes.

"touché," minhyuk mutters against his mouth.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i wrote the last 2k of this today and was screaming internally so hard that i had to post it. i have zero patience or self control. the only thing i have to say is that jooheon totally wasn't making it up, bc i am wonkyun trash first and foremost. and mvp hyungwon strikes again. like a billion times over lmao. the thing about the bloodroot is pulled from i think one of the many hp games that actually has ingredients, idfk, there are no real official ingredients for calming draughts anywhere but they're a year four thing.
> 
> please, i'm begging you, tell me what you loved. i would love hearing what you loved. i would love to scream with people about this chapter bc i really, really adore so many things about it. thanks for reading, regardless, and i hope everyone has a happy new year. <3 i'm a week ahead, technically, so year five isn't really due until like 1/12. i'll probably be earlier than that, but idk we'll see. if i disappear for 2 weeks, y'all have been warned. hopefully this chapter being early (and huge) makes up for it.


	5. year five

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> two very important notes/cws:  
> 1\. ki comes out to his parents in this chapter. if you've been paying attention you can probably guess how well that's going to go. i haven't tagged any outright homophobia, bc in my opinion there isn't any, they're just conservative, passive assholes. they don't even have dialogue, the whole thing is 100% about kihyun, but just wanted to warn people that the whole "his parents are dicks" part does get heavier here.  
> 2\. i cried writing a good bit of this so idk take that however. it might get a little emotional, but kihyun's struggles are a huge part of the foundation they're building for the rest of their lives. and tbh part of me crying could just be the fact that these characters are my babies and they're growing up? or maybe i wrote some super sad bullshit i can't tell anymore haha. there is also soft fluffy goodness, so i hope the rollercoaster is worth it in the end.

minhyuk told his mother they were dating when they went home for the summer. she told him to be careful with kihyun's heart, promised she wouldn’t tell the yoos ("yet", thereby implying kihyun better do it sooner rather than later), and informed him that if his grades suffer she'll tell the school to split them up — a veiled threat that conveyed her awareness of exactly what her son is doing, her acceptance nonetheless, and her determination that he should at least sleep in his own bed, despite sharing a room with his boyfriend.

~

they go back to school a few weeks before their six-month anniversary.

their first night back in the dorms is a little awkward. being at home for the summer meant more supervision, but at this point in their school careers, they can do almost anything and go almost anywhere. it's like their relationship was slowly and steadily progressing, with kihyun becoming more comfortable with the idea of not being straight, and now they're standing at the bottom of a vertical rock wall.

when they get to their room after the feast, they busy themselves with unpacking. kihyun hums a happy tune that minhyuk doesn't know, but it makes him feel warm and loved even though they're on opposite sides of the room.

suddenly overwhelmed, he drops the clothes he's holding and walks over to wrap himself around kihyun's back, pinning his arms to his sides.

the humming stops, and minhyuk smiles.

"min," kihyun warns.

"i missed you."

"we've been together all day."

"but i haven't hugged you," minhyuk says, pouting.

kihyun turns to face him, bringing his arms up and wrapping them around minhyuk's neck. he rolls his eyes at the pout on his face.

"you're impossible. this is weird, right?"

"the fact that we're finally alone and can do whatever we want without parents walking in?" minhyuk asks.

kihyun nods and minhyuk presses his lips to his forehead. "a little," he agrees after barely pulling away. "i'm happy we're back, though. we don't have to do anything you're uncomfortable with, i just love having this part of our lives that your parents can't touch. it's like a glimpse into the future."

kihyun's eyes soften, then he takes a deep breath and leans in to kiss minhyuk, which wasn't his intention — he was just being honest — but it's a nice side effect all the same.

"i don't know how you do that, but i love you," kihyun tells him.

"do what?" minhyuk asks, averting his gaze. sometimes kihyun looks at him and he thinks he might combust, and this is one of those times.

"say the right things without me asking the right questions."

"comes with the best friend territory, you sentimental goose." minhyuk drops his arms and makes a show of checking his watch. "merlin, look at the time!" he cries, letting out a shocked gasp. "we have to unpack! why did you distract me?"

kihyun sticks his tongue between his teeth and glares, but minhyuk can see the laugh he's trying to hold in. they stare at each other for a few seconds before kihyun groans and turns back to his luggage, knowing he's lost.

"i love you, too," minhyuk chirps happily, bouncing back to his side of the room.

~

if their fourth year was stressful in terms of classwork in preparation for their o.w.l.s, their fifth is downright murderous. a month in and they're buried under papers and practicing spells, and minhyuk is glad they're both kind of miserable at quidditch because he doesn't know if they'd survive extracurriculars.

potions, in particular, becomes a huge problem for kihyun. after too many failed potions in one week result in a very crabby boyfriend, minhyuk decides to take matters into his own hands.

"shit! merlin's balls!" kihyun spits, throwing his spoon on his desk after another draught of peace begins sparking.

"babe, you suck at this," minhyuk sighs, putting down his quill and rubbing his temples. "it's causing me physical pain. let me help."

"but your essay," kihyun protests weakly.

"is never going to get finished if you set our room on fire or keep planting images of old wizard genitalia in my head," minhyuk cautiously explains.

kihyun runs a hand through his hair and sighs before nodding, emptying the cauldron, and checking his ingredients.

the potion takes a while to brew. they make it through a dozen steps without any issues, despite a few close calls that minhyuk blames wholeheartedly on hormones rather than a lack of skill. it's in the simmering time after the powdered unicorn horn where kihyun's tension finally melts away under minhyuk's mouth, attentively tracing lines between the freckles and moles on his face and neck, that everything goes to hell.

suffice it to say the only thing minhyuk noticed turning purple was a spot on his boyfriend's collarbone, and he definitely owed kihyun a new cauldron.

"okay, maybe no potions help outside the classroom," minhyuk offers, observing the disgusting sludge and melting metal with an amused grin.

"i hate you," kihyun groans, backing towards his bed, pulling minhyuk along with fingers in his belt loops.

~

their birthdays pass quietly. sixteen might be some kind of important in the muggle world, but it doesn't seem to matter as much anymore. they don't even exchange gifts, just trade secret kisses and declarations that, on minhyuk's birthday, coincide too perfectly with nutmeg hacking up a hairball on kihyun's slippers.

minhyuk tries to pay more attention to her, after that.

"i can't believe you're skipping the first hogsmeade weekend," hyungwon says over their crystal balls in divination, a few days after kihyun's birthday. "you could finally go to madam puddifoot's."

minhyuk shrugs. "he's not ready for that, i don't think, and there's so much studying to do."

"have you asked him if he's ready for that?"

minhyuk shakes his head. "he'd do it for me if i asked, but there's a difference between him wanting to and him placating me."

"yeah, i suppose that's true," hyungwon agrees. he hums as he takes a few notes, then taps his wand to his ball and watches the contents shift. "jooheon finally has time to go," he adds. "it would've been fun to double date."

minhyuk raises an eyebrow in his direction, because this is the first he's heard of any dating news from hyungwon. he opens his mouth to ask, but hyungwon answers him first.

"not technically, not yet," he says, waving his hand dismissively. "i don't know how to bring it up."

"oh, how the tables have turned," minhyuk sing-songs. "nothing attempted, nothing obtained," he chirps, parroting hyungwon's butchered idiom from last fall back at him.

hyungwon levels him with a glare that would make him fear for his safety if it came from anyone in his own house.

"i could tell kihyunnie i changed my mind, if you really want me there," minhyuk tells him seriously, patting his shoulder. "we kind of owe you."

hyungwon chews his lip for a moment. "maybe just for the first day?" he suggests.

his friend is nervous, minhyuk realizes, and it's adorable. he nods, tossing hyungwon a reassuring smile. "i'm sure he'd be okay with a trip to the three broomsticks, at least. i'll ask him tonight."

hyungwon thanks him, relief evident in the way his shoulders relax.

_adorable._

~

a few days later, the four of them meet in hogsmeade. they tell stories over too many butterbeers and the first thing minhyuk learns about jooheon is that he's loud. the second thing he learns is that they have similar tastes in candy — when they abandon kihyun and hyungwon for honeydukes — and that's enough for him to approve of his friend's crush.

he tells hyungwon as much — whispers "ask him to go for tea" in his ear when he and kihyun say their goodbyes after a few hours in the pub — satisfied his advice is sound when he sees jooheon avert his eyes and stick his lower lip out at his shoes as he pulls away from hyungwon's ear.

when he and kihyun get back to the castle, it's quiet and the public areas are mostly empty. kihyun is silent on the way to their room, and doesn't speak as he changes into his pajamas. he sits at his desk and opens a textbook, resting his head on his hand.

minhyuk changes, too, mentally reviewing the night for anything he may have missed that would've made kihyun uncomfortable. he can't come up with anything, leaving him to presume that his boyfriend is suffering from a random bout of gay anxiety that he can't explain. minhyuk cautiously approaches the desk, putting his hands on kihyun's shoulders. "thanks for tonight," he says gently. "wonnie was really nervous and it reminded me of me last year, so i wanted to be there for him. it was nice to have you with me, though," he finishes, leaving a kiss on the crown of kihyun's head.

"i kissed yoongi."

minhyuk freezes.

"last year, just once. it wasn’t his fault. i didn't know…"

he trails off when minhyuk removes his hands and backs away.

"why would you tell me that?" minhyuk asks, voice calm and controlled.

"because you deserve someone who can love you in public," kihyun sighs, flipping to a new page in his book.

"you're a fucking idiot, yoo kihyun," minhyuk snarls, grabbing his cloak and wand from his trunk and disappearing into the hall. he leaves the door open, not trusting himself to close it without ripping it clean off the hinges.

¤

"you're a fucking idiot," yoongi growls.

"i know," kihyun whispers hoarsely. he sniffles and yoongi gets up, retrieves a box of tissues from his trunk and tosses it in his direction before landing back on his bed.

kihyun doesn't know where minhyuk went, because he hasn't tried to look for him. he's never heard minhyuk sound the way he did, and he's thankful he didn't have to see the look on his face because he's sure it would've broken his heart. he probably shouldn't have run to yoongi, but he didn't know where else to go.

"he's going to poison me or something and it's all going to be your fault."

"he won't," kihyun mumbles. "he knows you're important to me."

yoongi sighs. "he already hated me, but using me to sabotage your relationship because you're too scared to deal with people knowing about it was really fucking low."

"i know," kihyun mumbles.

"i should kick you out and never talk to you again."

"i _know_ ," he warbles.

"you need to tell your parents."

"yeah," he whispers, resigned.

there's a knock on the door and kihyun jumps before realizing it's too light to be minhyuk. yoongi gets up and opens it, whispering with the boy in the doorway for a few moments before pecking him on the cheek and watching him walk away.

"minhyuk is in hyungwon's room," he announces as he closes the door. "taehyungie told jiminie he saw him wandering the halls and helped him convince the fat lady to let him into the gryffindor dorm."

kihyun lets out a relieved sigh, because at least he's safe and has a place to sleep for the night.

"you fucked up, kihyun," yoongi says quietly, with gentleness kihyun didn't know he possessed, "but he loves you, and i honestly believe it's going to be okay if you tell him the truth. go get some sleep. fix it tomorrow."

¤

he writes a long letter to his parents when he gets back to his room. he tells them he's in love with minhyuk and has been for ages. he explains that he never felt anything with any of the girls they set him up with that was even a fraction as interesting as what he feels for his friend. he apologizes for being a disappointment, and a wizard, and tells them he loves them fiercely but needs to be his own person.

he explains that minhyuk makes him want to be great, and that he knows their definitions of great are different, but that he hopes they can come to understand that's okay and support him, because he wants them to be a part of his life, and his childrens' lives, if he should ever adopt any.

tears finally fall as he holds his wand to the parchment and sets it ablaze. pandora watches from his bed, head on her paws, tail swishing slowly in time with the flickering of the flame.

¤

kihyun wakes to the door slamming shut. he feels hungover and dehydrated from crying. a glass thuds against his nightstand and the sound reverberates inside his skull.

"drink that."

minhyuk, kihyun realizes.

"i almost kissed hyungwon last year," he starts, "so it wasn't fair of me to be upset about the kiss itself. i think i get why you did it."

kihyun wrestles his eyes open and sits up, grabbing the glass.

"but you—" minhyuk tries, interrupting himself with a grunt of frustration and wringing his hands around an imaginary neck in front of him. "you can't just decide what i deserve and drop a bomb on our relationship, kihyun. this is a damn democracy. i've been by your side for over a decade. i knew how this was going to go."

"i know that," kihyun replies, voice hoarse from sleep. "i'm really sorry."

"do you?" minhyuk asks, kicking his shoes off. "i don't expect anything outside of this room or my room at home. i signed up for being with you, not some perfect and out version of you. even if we're with our friends or my family who know about us."

kihyun takes another sip from the glass. "i want to tell them," he says. "my parents. next break."

minhyuk stares at him, scanning his face for emotion. "are you sure?" he asks, concerned.

"yeah, i'm sure. i don't know if i'll ever be able to go home again, but i need to do it."

minhyuk stands and crosses to kihyun's bed, climbing in to sit next to him. he reaches behind him, wraps an arm around kihyun's waist and sighs. kihyun hands him the empty glass and he places it on the nightstand. he rests his head on minhyuk's shoulder and closes his eyes.

"i love you, min. i freaked out. i'm sorry."

"i know," minhyuk replies, pulling him closer. "it's okay, but no more secret bombs."

"no more secrets to use," kihyun says honestly.

~

christmas comes, and they head home. kihyun clings to minhyuk's hand until the last possible second, including in the car after minhyuk's mother picks them up.

they tell her he's going to talk to his parents, and she wishes him luck and agrees to keep his things at the lee house in case he needs a place to stay.

minhyuk really, really loves his mother.

he kisses kihyun's forehead, says "i love you," and reminds him he's right next door if kihyun needs him, then watches the love of his life leave and walk into a potentially disastrous situation alone.

"minhyukkie, dear, come inside and say hello to your father," his mother says from the front seat. "he needs to do this on his own, but leave the door unlocked for him, okay?"

he nods, and she gets out and heads inside without him.

¤

it goes about as well as kihyun expected. he isn't outright disowned, but his parents stubbornly refuse to accept that he's not just confused. as their conversation drags into the second hour, kihyun deflates when he realizes he'll never get anywhere because they don't even see the situation as having more than one possible outcome. being gay is simply not a thing that exists in their worldview. it's almost worse this way, he thinks.

he tells them his things are at minhyuk's, that he'll be spending the break there, and he leaves.

he gets to minhyuk's and finds the door unlocked. he walks in and his boyfriend comes sliding around the corner in his socks on the hardwood.

"hey, kiki," he says softly after seeing kihyun's face. "you staying?"

kihyun locks the door behind him and toes his shoes off in the hallway. he nods, minhyuk opens his arms, and kihyun shuffles into them. minhyuk is still taller, which serves as a nice advantage now, allowing kihyun to feel completely surrounded and protected and home. he doesn't mean to cry, but he's so emotionally exhausted that it happens anyway. minhyuk holds him for a few minutes, waiting for the sniffles to subside.

"dad put all your stuff in the guest room already," minhyuk tells him eventually, wiping his thumbs under kihyun's eyes. "pandora and nutmeg are in the garden killing things. mum made trifle again. they'll come around."

"i'm sure the cats are just enjoying the sun," kihyun argues, purely for sport. his parents will probably come around, but not this break and probably not by summer.

"oh, babe, no," minhyuk says solemnly. "i heard screams."

kihyun huffs a laugh, and minhyuk smiles.

"your faith in the innocence of our children is beautiful, though," he says, grabbing kihyun's hand. "come on, dinner time."

~

despite everything, kihyun thoroughly enjoys the holiday. he and minhyuk spend their nights after dinner curled up in minhyuk's bed — with the door open, as requested — quizzing each other on spells and names and dates and potion ingredients until kihyun is too tired to do it anymore and reluctantly tears himself away from minhyuk's limbs to stagger down the hall to the guest room.

minhyuk's parents treat kihyun largely the same as they always had, and by the time they head back to school in january, he feels rejuvenated in a way he didn't know he desperately needed until it was given to him.

there’s another hogsmeade trip at the end of the month, and while kihyun isn’t about to ask minhyuk to go to madam puddifoot’s, he does want to spend the weekend with hyungwon and jooheon — who finally accepted they were each head over heels for the other when they were separated for christmas — if they can.

"i’ll ask him tomorrow," minhyuk tells him, referring to hyungwon, "but i’m sure they’d love to." he pauses and chews on the end of his quill while scanning his charms notes; some nervous habit he’s picked up in the last week or two when he’s studying. "are you sure?" he asks.

"mmhmm," kihyun confirms, not looking away from his own notes. "i want to walk around in the snow and hold your hand and drink butterbeer and laugh with our friends, min."

"okay," minhyuk agrees, and they fall silent again.

¤

"jooheonie, your _hair_!" minhyuk gasps, stopping in the middle of the street and staring at him, hair approximately the same color as the snow around them.

"i was trying to go for orange, but it didn't quite take," he explains loudly, smiling wide and bouncing on his feet next to hyungwon where they wait outside the three broomsticks.

kihyun grabs minhyuk's elbow, steering him gently around the group of people between them all. 

"it's so cool!" minhyuk gushes. "kihyunnie, do you think i should change my hair?"

kihyun wrinkles his nose, thinking. "orange could be cute. red might be nice, too," he decides, slipping his hand into minhyuk's carefully, like he's holding some priceless artifact.

minhyuk sees hyungwon glance down, and swells with pride when a smile barely cracks the careful air of indifference he wears in public.

"can we go inside?" hyungwon asks. "it's freezing out here."

inside, they get a booth and butterbeers. jooheon and kihyun end up talking about music, and minhyuk catches hyungwon staring at his new boyfriend adoringly. he kicks him under the table and they excuse themselves to get more drinks.

"the white hair is nice," minhyuk chirps.

hyungwon groans. "minhyuk, it's killing me. do you see him? i want to eat him, but in a loving way," he sighs.

"vore," minhyuk comments offhandedly. kihyun would look incredible with pink hair, he thinks, or blue.

"vore?"

"huh? oh, it's a muggle thing and it makes no sense," he says, waving his hand in the air. "don't worry about it."

hyungwon eyes him suspiciously, but lets it go. "so kihyun," he says, leaning against the bar while they wait.

"he's being amazing," minhyuk sighs. "i can't believe he grabbed my hand."

"i'm so happy for him. remind me to thank him for entertaining jooheon's music talk."

"they probably didn't even notice we left," minhyuk laughs.

their butterbeers are delivered, they pay, and they make their way back to their booth. jooheon's entire face lights up when hyungwon slides in next to him, and he leans in to peck the older boy on the cheek.

minhyuk grabs kihyun's hand under the table and squeezes it, because watching their friends be cute makes him miss his boyfriend even though he's right next to him. kihyun lifts their hands, fingers still entwined, and wraps his arm around minhyuk's shoulders, pulling him close to his side. he happily stays there for the next hour, kihyun absentmindedly tracing patterns on his hand with a thumb, basking in the knowing looks hyungwon shoots him every now and then.

~

in spring, another house quidditch tournament is arranged. fifth years are allowed to opt out for the sake of studying, but absolutely none of them do, preferring instead to alleviate some stress by flying around chasing balls.

minhyuk tries to grab a bat, but kihyun encourages him to play alongside him as a chaser instead.

"chasers have two types of balls to worry about," minhyuk worries, "it honestly sounds more dangerous than being a beater."

"the quaffle's job isn't to try to attack people," kihyun argues. "plus, you promised me you'd never play as a beater again."

"i was delirious," minhyuk pouts. "i would've promised to make friends with the giant squid if you had asked."

"i'm holding you to that if you get hit again, so be careful."

they win their first game quickly, largely thanks to an official school team chaser player as their seeker. their second match is against yoongi's team, and while minhyuk has softened towards him a bit in light of the help he gave kihyun after their fight in the fall, he still wants to knock him out of the bracket.

the snitch is slow to come out, this time, allowing a back and forth between the teams that leaves them tied until the end. kihyun's competitive nature rears its head, and minhyuk almost falls off his broom when kihyun gets the quaffle through a hoop for the third time.

he’s tired, he tells himself. it has nothing to do with the wind pushing kihyun’s hair back and the grin on his face.

the snitch is caught by their seeker again, ending the game before anyone else can score and sending them into a third game. they’re sent to the stands to wait, and minhyuk is pretty sure he might lose his mind. kihyun is a sweaty mess, hair standing up every which way, and he’s never been hotter. 

he draws a small heart on kihyun’s thigh, and kihyun knocks their shoulders together.

if minhyuk actively attempts to play terribly for their third game so he can make out with his boyfriend as soon as possible, he really doesn’t think he can be blamed for it.

 _at least we beat yoongi,_ he thinks.

~

it’s a quiet saturday morning when minhyuk climbs into kihyun’s bed at six o’clock. the pressure of upcoming exams is monumental and he should let kihyun sleep, but it’s also their one year anniversary and sleepy morning kihyun is one of his top three favorite kihyuns.

"what are you doing," he mumbles flatly, and minhyuk smiles into the space between his shoulders.

"i love you," minhyuk tells him. "happy anniversary." he presses a kiss to the back of kihyun’s neck and kihyun shivers, pulling his blankets a little tighter around his head.

"love you, too. get out of my bed."

"kihyunnie," minhyuk whines.

kihyun taps his mattress with his palm, trying to get pandora’s attention. "pandora, kill it," he weakly commands.

"nice try but she’s dead asleep, babe."

kihyun clicks his tongue. "traitor," he hisses.

minhyuk kisses the back of his neck again before climbing out of his bed. he tucks the covers back around him carefully before gathering a change of clothes and heading for the showers. they have a long day of studying ahead of them, but he thinks he can probably convince kihyun to take a break to celebrate at some point, which gives him more than enough energy to start his day.

~

kihyun feels surprisingly zen about o.w.l.s.

the last two years have been spent preparing as much as he can, and he no longer feels as much pressure to satisfy his parents. the only subjects he’s concerned about are potions and charms, but minhyuk has been a huge help with the former and hyungwon’s charms notes were immaculate, so he’s relatively confident.

minhyuk, on the other hand, is not zen.

"i’m going to fail transfiguration and they’re not going to let me live in wizard society," he whines.

"you’re not going to fail, min."

"would you love me even if i were a muggle shoe salesman?"

"are you a muggle selling shoes, are you selling shoes for muggles, or are you selling shoes made out of muggles?" kihyun asks, practicing wand flicks.

minhyuk groans and flops face first on his bed.

kihyun sets his wand down and lies on the bed next to him, placing a hand on his back. "i’d love you in any of those cases, but you’re not going to fail."

"thanks," he sighs.

¤

the two weeks of exams are exhausting. they barely talk, focused on studying between dinner and falling asleep. in the middle of the first week, kihyun starts climbing into minhyuk’s bed with him to wake him up. they spend a solid ten minutes dozing together, and it makes everything just a little more bearable for both of them.

ancient runes is _hard_ , and kihyun has a minor breakdown after the test, but minhyuk is there, ready to drop everything and calm him down.

he returns the favor the next week after the divination exam. their last exam is history of magic, and both of them are so done with everything that they blow off studying for playing wizard’s chess, eating too much candy, and taking a walk around the grounds.

"i love your parents, but i don’t want to go home," kihyun says, halfway around the lake.

"you could stay here, but mum would be sad," minhyuk replies.

"just your mother?"

"hmm, maybe dad, too."

the summer sun paints the horizon a deep red. pink and orange clouds reflect off the lake. minhyuk’s eyes catch the light, and kihyun loses himself for a few seconds.

"i know i’m pretty, but you’re staring," he teases.

"yeah," kihyun agrees, reaching out for minhyuk’s hand. "let’s go pack."

"didn’t you just say you didn’t want to go home?" he asks, confused.

"yeah, but then i was staring at your obnoxiously gorgeous face," kihyun says, rolling his eyes, "and i realized where we are doesn’t matter to me. home is wherever you are, always has been."

minhyuk launches himself at kihyun, knocking him to the ground. "that was the cheesiest thing i’ve ever heard," he whimpers, sniffling.

kihyun tightens his arms around minhyuk’s back and kisses the side of his head. "if you tell hyungwon," he whispers, "i’ll avada kedavra you in your sleep."

"i love you, too."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> look, mom, i'm early! hyungheon riiiiise. much love to the friend that gave me hair color ideas for joo. the vore conversation is pretty close to a real one i've had about hyungwon don't ask. min yoongi: year five mvp! gonna pretend taehyung is a gryffindor! minhyuk calling kihyun kiki and babe is like my favorite thing i'm not sorry. i'm just spewing random gibberish at this point bc all the important stuff was in the beginning note this time hahaha. year six is gonna be a blast. no parent drama, i swear. thanks for reading love you all happy new year etc. again if you didn't read the hyungkyun i posted on new year's and get my happy new year from that a/n.


	6. year six

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> there is no underage sex in this but there are suggestions of shenanigans. i'm not changing any ratings (yet haha) bc nothing actually happens. they're 17, they're basically adults in the wizard world, but let this be my disclaimer anyway.
> 
> also jimin is underage drinking but not by much and he's with yoongi blah blah blah trust and love also my boy holds his booze better than anyone, so.
> 
> this chapter is one hell of a fluffy mess as promised have fun.

"i can't believe my parents are going to spend christmas in greece without me. without us!"

"i can't believe you're still not over this," kihyun replies, refusing to look up from his desk. "they told us months ago."

"no christmas, kihyun!" minhyuk wails from kihyun’s bed, where he’s sprawled out on his stomach.

kihyun puts his quill down and turns in his chair to face him, finally. the lanterns around the room cast a glow on the disapproval etched into his features and minhyuk tries not to laugh. it’s the middle of the day, but heavy snow is blocking most of the sun from reaching below the lake. everything is dark and cold and minhyuk _might_ be acting up for attention.

kihyun stares at him for a moment and then his features soften. he gets up and moves to the bed, positioning himself on his stomach next to minhyuk. he gets close to minhyuk’s ear and nips it before whispering, " _our_ christmas, minhyukkie. just us." he follows it with soft kisses across minhyuk’s jaw on the way to his lips and if minhyuk wasn’t trying so hard not to cry, he’d be pretty damn pleased with himself for his plan’s success.

kihyun nudges him onto his back and climbs over him, sitting on his thighs. he runs his fingers under the edge of minhyuk’s shirt and minhyuk is about to gloat when he’s petrified.

literally.

"two weeks until break, min, and then i’m yours," kihyun purrs lowly in his ear. "we’ll stay here and it’ll be _wonderful_. but please, mon chien, study. let me study. we talked about this over the summer."

he pulls his wand out of his back pocket and flicks it, within minhyuk’s line of sight this time, to free him.

"i can’t believe you," minhyuk whines. "get off me," he mumbles dejectedly, pouting and pushing at kihyun’s hips.

kihyun raises an eyebrow at him, but ultimately rolls to the side and off the bed. "i’m sorry," he says, "but it’s for our own good. we need good grades if we want good jobs so we can feed all of our kids," he explains nonchalantly as he makes his way back to his desk.

"all of our kids?" minhyuk questions.

"mm, have i never told you i want at least three of them?" kihyun replies casually.

"three," minhyuk repeats lamely, staring at the canopy above kihyun’s bed.

he just wanted some cuddle time. he has no idea how his plan went awry. more importantly, he thought he was the sneaky one in their relationship, but it occurs to him that he may have been underestimating his boyfriend for years. most importantly, he realizes as he tries to sit up, there’s no way he’s focusing on studying until he gets a cold shower.

~

n.e.w.t-level courses are maddening, but they do offer a slightly more relaxed schedule that kihyun and minhyuk have learned to appreciate.

they both did well on their o.w.l.s, leaving them free to tailor their studies to almost any career path they wanted. they spent the summer discussing and reflecting. they entered their sixth-year with plans for themselves, a vague idea of where they wanted to be in five years, and an easy acceptance that "where they wanted to be" included next to each other, because that was non-negotiable.

they bicker about the stupidest shit kihyun can imagine, but he supposes the important part is that they've grown and changed and _still_ bicker about the stupidest shit, because what's the point in staying in a relationship where you grow as a couple in a way that takes you away from being yourself? calm, for them, is a sign of minhyuk being in his head and upset, or kihyun worrying about his life choices and if his parents will ever talk to him again.

calm screams imminent disaster.

which isn’t to say they haven’t calmed down significantly, because they have. even with the relaxed schedule, the studying is intense, and they’ve taken to spending a lot of their time during the week existing in the same space but not interacting. kihyun started waking minhyuk up by climbing into his bed — like he did during their o.w.l.s — after their first month. at this point, he’s not entirely sure why they even use separate beds at all, except that he thinks nutmeg and pandora might riot if they didn’t and it's habit to keep on pretending he doesn't want to share.

the idea of spending the holiday break at the castle is very appealing. he loves minhyuk’s parents, who have been incredible over the last year, but he also loves the thought of carving out their own traditions for the holiday.

he doesn't quite love the thought of the yule ball, brought to life this year as a new, annual event before the break. he knows minhyuk is excited, though, which is the sole reason he’s recruited hyungwon to distract minhyuk in hogsmeade this weekend, and begged yoongi to go with him to pick out an outfit.

"this," yoongi says definitively, after strolling through racks of clothes of silence for ten minutes. he stands in front of a dark olive green jacket with black detailing around the lapels. "put a dark shirt under it. it’s simple but you’ll look great."

kihyun squints at it hesitatingly. "is it fancy enough?"

"you could wear a potato sack and he wouldn't care, i promise," yoongi tells him, rolling his eyes. "we could change your hair to a nice silver, too. i'm going to go find you a belt."

yoongi wanders off to look at accessories. kihyun grabs the jacket, a matching shirt, and some pants. they meet at the counter in the front of the store. yoongi has a thin belt with a silver buckle that he puts on top of kihyun’s pile, and a silver bracelet that he holds onto. they pay, kihyun silently thanking his parents for whatever newfound guilt made them decide to triple his allowance, and make their way outside.

"do you mind bringing this back to the castle for me?" kihyun asks, holding out his bag. "i want to find min and say hi."

"ugh," yoongi scoffs, taking the bag from him anyway. "you've only been away from each other for a few hours. how do you live on days you have different classes?"

"by looking forward to the weekends," kihyun answers, shrugging. "don't pretend you don't want to get back to jimin as soon as possible," he adds teasingly.

"yeah, yeah, fine," yoongi replies, turning his nose up in mock offense.

they part ways with a wave, and kihyun heads to the three broomsticks to try to find minhyuk.

~

the ball is held on the following thursday, with vacation beginning the day after. kihyun gets ready in yoongi’s room, with minhyuk and hyungwon trapping jimin in kihyun and minhyuk’s room. kihyun is slightly afraid of what might happen with the three of them together, but quickly forgets his concerns when yoongi does the charm to change his hair color to a dark silver and holds out a small box.

"this is for you," he says stiffly. "for tonight, so open it now."

kihyun opens the box and his breath catches. inside is the bracelet yoongi bought last weekend, with charms attached. he finds two cats, what he recognizes from illustrations as a thestral, a snake with emerald eyes, and a wand. 

"i had jiminie make the thestral because my art skills are miserable, but i thought it was important," yoongi tells him. "the cats are for nutmeg and pandora," he continues, taking the bracelet out and undoing the clasp. kihyun holds his wrist out and lets him put it on. "i thought it would be nice for the ball, but consider it an early graduation gift, and an overdue congratulations for sorting everything out with minhyuk."

"it's beautiful, thank you," kihyun chokes out, rotating his hand to watch the charms catch the light. he hasn't thought too hard about this being yoongi's last year, but now he realizes he's not sure what he'll do without him. his vision clouds as he tears up, and yoongi pats his knee.

"don't ruin that eye makeup," he says, clearing his throat. "we should go meet our princes."

¤

minhyuk adjusts his shirt for the third time, doing and undoing buttons in front of the mirror, trying to figure out how many to leave open over the golden undershirt.

"all of them except the bottom one," jimin tells him from the bed where he’s flat on his chest, chin on the bed, petting nutmeg.

"you’re not even looking," minhyuk whines.

"he’s right, though," hyungwon interjects in between cooing at pandora.

minhyuk sighs and undoes the buttons, as instructed.

"looks fantastic," jimin confirms.

"i can see you in the mirror, you haven’t looked at me once."

"he’s right, though," hyungwon says again, making eye contact with minhyuk in the mirror and grinning. "are we finally ready?"

"i can't believe you two. i've been ready, you've been spoiling the cats."

"i could tell yoongi was still next door," jimin explains. "no need to hurry away from cats if he and kihyun were still getting ready."

"i just missed pandora," hyungwon shrugs. "sorry."

¤

the three of them eventually make it down to the great hall — after spelling away the cat fur on hyungwon’s lap and jimin spending a few minutes fixing his hair again — and run into jooheon first, who is standing to the side of the doors talking animatedly with a couple in contrasting black and red suits. hyungwon sneaks behind his boyfriend and wraps his arms around his waist, startling him.

jooheon jumps, but recovers quickly, twisting in hyungwon’s arms to smile at him. "finally! hyungwonnie, this is changkyun and hoseok!" he announces, gesturing to them in turn. "changkyun is the ravenclaw transfer student from ilvermorny i’ve told you about," he explains, "and hoseok is hufflepuff’s quidditch captain."

hyungwon steps to the side and bows politely, but minhyuk can practically see the wheels spinning in his head, trying to figure out their weaknesses as he looks them over.

"jooheon speaks very highly of you," changkyun says, and his american accent is kind of charming, minhyuk has to admit. "it’s nice to meet you," he continues, looking pointedly at hyungwon. after a moment, he looks to minhyuk and jimin, then smiles, unleashing a particularly disarming set of dimples. "you must be minhyuk," he decides, looking him square in the eyes. "and i’m sorry, but i don’t know who you’re supposed to be, because jooheon said kihyun was coming with yoongi."

"jimin. i’m yoongi’s boyfriend," he explains.

"yeah you are, baby," yoongi’s voice cuts in suddenly. "you look stunning," he adds, kissing jimin on the cheek, before minhyuk tunes him out because if yoongi is here that means kihyun is, too.

he spins and finds kihyun behind him, silver-haired and gorgeous. "oh my f—" he starts, but kihyun chooses that moment to give him a quick kiss and his entire brain stops processing language.

"are we all here, finally?" jooheon calls. "everyone have their significant other?"

kihyun tugs gently at the scarf in minhyuk's belt loops. "i like this," he says, twisting it around his fingers, and minhyuk might actually melt into the floor. "who are the guys in the black and red with jooheon?" kihyun asks under his breath.

minhyuk's brain recognizes a question and starts up again. "that ravenclaw and the hufflepuff quidditch captain that hyungwon told us about a couple of years ago," he whispers in kihyun’s ear. "changkyun and hoseok. i’m waiting for him to figure out how to break them."

kihyun snickers. "if anyone can, it’s hyungwon."

jooheon leads them all inside, but minhyuk pays very little attention to what’s going on around them as they walk.

"have i told you recently that i think you’re incredibly attractive?" minhyuk whispers again.

"no, but i know you hate stating the obvious," kihyun says sympathetically, brushing off the compliment with ease.

minhyuk is so taken aback he laughs and bends over sputtering, making the rest of the group turn to them inquisitively.

"it's nothing," kihyun assures everyone, patting minhyuk between the shoulders. "inside joke."

a booming voice carries through the hall, announcing that the ball has begun. a moment later, festive streamers and balloons fall from the star-covered ceiling, music starts, and minhyuk regains his composure to drag kihyun away from the tables for the first of many, many dances.

¤

after the ball, minhyuk climbs into kihyun's bed and snuggles up next to him, resting his head on kihyun's chest. he fiddles with the charms on kihyun's bracelet, which he learned halfway through the ball was a gift from yoongi. on any other night, it might have bothered him, but tonight he had decided to let it go.

"they're really beautiful," minhyuk observes. "it's an odd gift, though."

"it's all about us, min," kihyun replies. "he had jimin make the thestral. do you remember the first time we came to the castle from the train by thestral-drawn carriage?"

"i was furious at him for trying to steal my best friend," minhyuk laughs. "and he asked me if i liked you when i went to apologize that night."

"really?" kihyun asks, surprised, and minhyuk nods. "yoongi has been a better friend to you than you'll ever know," kihyun continues, punctuating his statement with a kiss to the top of minhyuk's head.

minhyuk closes his eyes and exhaustion sweeps over him. "i should go to bed," he mumbles into kihyun's shirt.

kihyun tightens the arm around his shoulders in response. "okay," he says. "i love you, min."

"you, too," minhyuk murmurs.

¤

minhyuk wakes up feeling like he’s being smothered. it takes a second for him to realize the thing smothering him is furry, and another few seconds to realize his pillow is kind of hard. he opens his eyes and all he can see is black. he feels a hand around his waist, and everything slowly clicks. he fell asleep in kihyun’s bed, on kihyun’s chest, which apparently pandora decided to try to claim for herself at some point during the night, minhyuk’s airways be damned.

"i could've made her move, but she looks so comfortable," kihyun drawls sleepily.

 _is he serious?_ minhyuk thinks, unable to speak. he resorts to pinching kihyun's side in protest. kihyun jerks, waking pandora, who thankfully removes herself from minhyuk's head.

"she was trying to suffocate me," minhyuk complains.

"doubt it. i think she’s starting to like you."

"she was on my face."

"she usually sleeps on my chest. your face was on her pillow," kihyun counters.

"i seem to recall saying i should go to bed and someone tightening his arm so i couldn’t leave."

"i’m not awake enough to follow this. what are we arguing about again?"

minhyuk hums and closes his eyes again. he’s very warm and very content and he could get very used to this, which is why they’ve very intentionally avoided it. "your cat tried to kill me and you’re never sleeping alone again."

kihyun shrugs, wrapping his other arm around minhyuk, holding him tighter against his chest. "use a real pillow instead of my chest next time and she won’t sleep on your face," he instructs, leaving no room for debate.

~

the slytherin common room is never particularly busy, but kihyun and minhyuk spend a lot of time in it over the break because it’s absolutely empty. they leave their bedroom door open during the day, letting pandora and nutmeg come and go as they please, but they choose to spend most of their time wherever kihyun and minhyuk are. they lounge on the highest surfaces they can reach in the common room for the first day, then decide the fireplace mantle is the coziest and curl up together in the middle of it.

kihyun notices them when he takes a reading break. he taps minhyuk’s shoulder, and minhyuk tips his head back to look at him, marking his place in his book with his fingertips. kihyun points at the cats.

minhyuk looks in the direction of the fireplace and snorts when he spots them. "cute. guess you were right, babe."

"i thought it’d take longer for them to get over themselves, honestly."

"will their newfound love last when they’re in the same bed at three in the morning, though?"

"merlin, i hope so," kihyun replies, exasperated. "i wish nutmeg would attack me instead of pandora. it's not her fault, it's mine."

"they're cats, ki," minhyuk says sarcastically. "i think you're giving them too much credit."

kihyun pushes minhyuk into a sitting position and raises an eyebrow at him. "that book is about a niffler that robbed the potter vault at gringotts and you want to claim i'm giving our animals too much credit?"

"this book is fiction, silly," minhyuk chirps, leaning back against kihyun's chest happily.

kihyun shakes his head, speechless, and decides to let it go. "you're lucky you're hot," he says instead.

"mm, i think _you're_ the lucky one," minhyuk hums, reaching to take kihyun's wrist and pulling his arm around himself.

kihyun feels his face heat up and decides minhyuk has won — something that happens with alarming frequency these days.

~

apparition lessons are offered after the break. minhyuk could do without learning it at all, but kihyun insists on taking them, and being left alone in bed for twelve saturday mornings is a steep price to pay to get out of something that might ultimately be beneficial to know in the future, so he signs up.

the instructor is a short, portly man with a mustache and top hat. he talks about "destination! determination! deliberation!" with the conviction of a preacher on sunday mornings and minhyuk is so tired he almost walks out because this is way too much for him this early in the day.

"is there a fourth d for defenestration because that would be great right now," he mutters.

"for him or you?" hyungwon whispers.

minhyuk snorts, then tries to cover it with a cough. he fails miserably. kihyun glares at them both, and their instructor singles minhyuk out to try it first, pointing at a hoop that he conjured a few meters away.

minhyuk sighs and pulls his wand out of his pocket. he clears his mind, focuses on the hoop, spins, and after a very brief sensation of extreme pressure, he appears cleanly inside it. he checks himself and doesn't notice any missing body parts.

"nicely done, mister lee!" their instructor excitedly calls. "who's next?"

hyungwon and kihyun both make it easily. a few people have some splinching accidents; class ends for the week when someone's big toe is the only thing to make it inside the hoop.

"how did you do that so easily?" hyungwon asks minhyuk on the way out of the hall.

"i got an o in transfiguration," minhyuk shrugs. "it makes no sense but i've accepted i'm better at that kind of thing when i stop thinking about it, so i didn't think that hard."

kihyun shakes his head next to them like this is the worst thing he's ever heard, even though he and minhyuk have discussed it before.

hyungwon nods, though, accepting minhyuk's explanation without question. "sounds like divination for me. you're lucky."

"can we stop encouraging my boyfriend to not think about what he’s doing when he apparates? i like him not splinched into multiple pieces or dead."

hyungwon wrinkles his nose, disgusted. minhyuk coos, pleased.

"do you hear that, wonnie? he likes me _not dead_. so romantic," he announces dramatically as they reach the slytherin dungeon.

"you two are revolting. see you later."

~

the three of them pass their exam a few months later without any issues, right before easter.

kihyun and minhyuk stay at the castle for the break again, partly as a result of minhyuk's stubborn grudge over his parents abandoning them for christmas and partly out of necessity — kihyun is working on a project with glumbumbles and doesn't want to leave them unattended. 

their anniversary and easter aligning perfectly this year might be another reason kihyun doesn't particularly want to spend it in minhyuk's parents' home, and might be why he started his project early, but minhyuk doesn't need to know that.

the day before, yoongi knocks on the door and asks if they want to sneak out to hogsmeade with him and jimin. he glances knowingly at minhyuk, lounging in kihyun’s bed, when he asks, and kihyun rolls his eyes.

"yes, please!" minhyuk enthusiastically agrees. "he keeps talking to me about his glumbumbles instead of taking my clothes off and i’m bored. we’ll meet you guys in the common room in five minutes."

yoongi groans. "i could’ve done without hearing most of that, thanks."

"let it serve as a reminder to pay attention to your boyfriend, min yoongi."

"oh, my god," kihyun mutters, but yoongi just grins, rolls his tongue across his bottom lip like he's considering saying something, then turns and walks away.

kihyun pins minhyuk to the bed, bites his lip, and they're ten minutes late.

¤

"finally," jimin groans when they come around the corner into the common room.

"sorry, we had a—" kihyun starts.

"i couldn't find my scarf," minhyuk finishes.

 _close enough_ , kihyun thinks.

yoongi turns in his seat, where he's running fingers through jimin's hair on his lap, and blinks at them. "you're a wizard, minhyuk," he says, amused. "that's what _accio_ is for."

"muggle habits die hard, you know."

"okay, sweetheart," jimin pipes up again, standing and holding out a hand for yoongi. "leave the lovebirds to their lies, i'm thirsty."

yoongi kisses him on the nose and nods, stepping aside to gather their coats and helping jimin into his.

kihyun will never get used to seeing them together. jimin is definitely a slytherin, but he's full of light and brightness in a way that seems very at odds with yoongi's general temperament. it's not entirely unlike how he assumes people see him and minhyuk, but cranked up to eleven, and there's a difference between recognizing something in yourself and seeing it so clearly in others.

minhyuk elbows him. "is he usually this soft with people he likes or is it just jimin?" he asks quietly.

kihyun shakes his head. "this is a jimin exclusive."

minhyuk hooks his arm around kihyun's elbow and holds his wrist, playing with the charms on his bracelet. "i'm glad you have him in your life."

"me, too."

"allez!" jimin shouts, clapping excitedly. "firewhisky awaits!"

¤

two hours later, yoongi tips back his fourth glass quietly. his boyfriend does the same, at a higher volume, letting the empty glass thud against the table when he puts it down.

kihyun accepted, after finishing one drink in the time they downed three, that he and minhyuk had no hope of staying caught up with them.

"how often do you guys do this?" minhyuk asks, seemingly reading kihyun's mind.

minhyuk is beautiful, even in this shitty pub, and kihyun thinks he must be the luckiest man in the world. he rests his hand on minhyuk's knee and runs his fingers along his inseam, spinning his empty glass with the hand left above the table.

"a lot," jimin says, gesturing at yoongi to go get them another round. "he thinks he has a higher tolerance than me. it's cute."

"seems like he does," minhyuk says, breath hitching at the end of his statement.

kihyun realizes his fingers have traveled farther north than he intended and starts walking them back to minhyuk's knee.

"i let him think he does," jimin confesses, winking at minhyuk.

yoongi comes back with more drinks. kihyun leans his head against minhyuk's shoulder, draws hearts on his thigh, and listens to his breathing in between sips from his third glass.

firewhisky is weird, he decides. not something he finds particularly enjoyable, but not the worst thing he's ever tasted. he should probably be trying a bit harder to control his hands, but the little sounds minhyuk has been making for the past few minutes are very interesting.

yoongi clears his throat, pulling kihyun's focus back to the pub they're sitting in. "i wanted to thank you both."

"me?" minhyuk squeaks.

"mostly kihyun, but yeah, you too. my first year here was pretty lonely. having you two as neighbors made things interesting, at least."

"he means he loves you and he's going to miss you next year," jimin chirps, patting yoongi's hand on the table while yoongi looks away.

minhyuk downs the rest of his glass and shuffles sideways to stand, letting kihyun's hand thump against the seat. he walks around the table and throws his arms around yoongi's neck.

yoongi looks at kihyun with wide, terrified eyes, and kihyun shrugs in apology.

"kihyunnie loves you, too. if you don't keep in touch i'll never forgive you," minhyuk tells him. "jiminie, make him keep in touch, okay?" he pleads, crushing yoongi's head to his chest.

"he'll be around, you'll see plenty of him," jimin promises, nodding seriously.

"okay, good." minhyuk releases yoongi's head and stands next to kihyun. "we should go," he announces, glancing sideways at kihyun. "someone is a little drunk."

kihyun realizes, all at once, that leaving means going back to their room, and that their room is emptier than the pub, and that minhyuk appears alarmingly sober. he may have miscalculated how much touching he should let himself get away with.

¤

"you're so drunk, babe. give me— no wands," minhyuk says, snatching kihyun's wand mid-flick, exasperation evident in his voice. he undoes kihyun's belt and jeans, pushing them down his legs, then kneels to pull off his shoes.

kihyun closes his eyes and groans, because minhyuk on his knees in front of him is an image that has lived in his head for too long to become real when he's this inebriated. 

"you know, you could use your words," minhyuk ribs playfully, guiding kihyun's legs out of his clothes. "please is a good one."

"not like this," kihyun mumbles, proud of himself for sticking to some moral high ground.

minhyuk stands and pushes his hands into kihyun's hoodie, lifting it up and over his head, and sighs. "not when we both clearly want me to suck you off," he says. "okay."

kihyun grabs both of minhyuk's hands and pulls him towards his bed, where the cats sit watching them. he musters all of the coherent, rational excuses he can. "pandora is way too interested, and i don't want to be drunk. i love you too much. soon, okay?"

"being drunk is what makes it easy," minhyuk sighs. "but fine. she _is_ kind of creeping me out."

pandora meows loudly, as if in protest, and kihyun laughs.

he pushes the covers away and climbs into his bed, backing into the center to leave room for minhyuk, who sheds his own jeans and hoodie and climbs into kihyun's waiting arms. they've gotten good at this, by now, and minhyuk slides against him like a puzzle piece snapping into place.

"my tetris block," kihyun coos, wrapping his arms around minhyuk's shoulders tightly while trying to ignore the pressure against his leg.

he feels minhyuk kiss his neck and shoulder, probably because it's all he can reach, and then kihyun falls asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry @ wonkyun if you know me you know they're my otp but this ain't about them hyungwon probs eviscerated them.
> 
> what is a schedule idk. year seven! loose ends to tie! an epilogue to plan! almost done i might cry.
> 
> thank you to everyone who has supported this mess. comments really mean the world -- i was basically blocked for two days on the last 1k of this until someone dropped a very nice comment. so much love for you all reading this either way.


	7. year seven

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> they... still technically haven't done anything on screen worthy of an m rating, but anyway they're 18 and there's way more sexual commentary in this chapter. don't @ me about tops and bottoms bc if you're picky about that with kihyuk idk how you live.
> 
> kihyun's parents make an appearance, so emotional seatbelts may be necessary.

jimin moves into yoongi's room at the beginning of their seventh year.

minhyuk supposes it's better than a random first-year getting lucky and them being stuck with someone they don't know very well next door, but there's something so depressing and final about it. it hits kihyun hard, in combination with another summer spent avoiding all but basic formalities with his parents and the stress of starting their last year in the comfort of the castle before being thrust into the real world.

after dinner, he curls up on his side in bed and rests his head in minhyuk's lap, the same way he has for the last few nights. minhyuk's fingers gravitate to his hair, sliding through the strands with an easy confidence, occasionally delivering gentle scratches to his scalp that make him sigh contentedly.

minhyuk shouldn’t enjoy this. he feels guilty that he does, but kihyun is always so focused on schoolwork that outside of their breaks, there hasn’t been a lot of time to just _exist_ together like this for years. most moments are spent with books and notes as a third wheel to their cuddle time, or are more hormone-driven. this doesn’t bother him in the slightest, normally, but the change of pace is still nice.

a sudden thud against the window makes them both jump.

minhyuk twists and spots something obstructing the view of the water, then lets out a blood-curdling scream. kihyun bolts upright. nutmeg and pandora stand to attention, backs arched and tails as wide as minhyuk’s wrist, united against the common enemy that alarmed one of their humans.

there's movement outside the window and minhyuk scurries out of bed, backing away from the window with his wand raised in front of him.

"min," kihyun says, measured and deliberate as he cautiously approaches his side, "is that a suction cup?"

"a suction cup?!" minhyuk screeches. his heart thumps so hard he feels like it's going to pop out of his chest, and possibly the earth's atmosphere to start a new life on the moon.

the lake water swirls around window, and minhyuk tries to come up with a succession of spells he'd be able to use if whatever is out there were to break through, but an eye appears and he lets out another shriek instead.

kihyun gasps beside him, then laughs, letting out staccato squeaks that seem like the very wrong reaction for their current situation. minhyuk doesn't know if he should watch the eye or his boyfriend, leaving him frozen in panic, whipping his head back and forth between them.

"squid," kihyun finally gets out between squeaks. "it's the giant squid."

minhyuk looks again and realizes kihyun is right — that's a squid eye, and it's _blinking_ at him. "is he" he starts, lowering his wand, "winking at us?"

"people do say he's friendly," kihyun says, bending over, hands on his knees to try to catch his breath. "oh my god, i can't believe this."

minhyuk takes a few slow, careful steps towards the window. he swears he sees the eye widen slightly, but it looks _pleased_. he blinks back at it calmly, like he does to nutmeg when she headbutts his face to request attention.

kihyun exhales loudly next to him and stands upright again, shaking his head. "six years in this room and we never saw him until today."

"maybe yoongi sent him to say hello," minhyuk jokes.

"ah, i wouldn't put it past him." kihyun says, and minhyuk turns his head to see a sad smile. "he threatened to send me a howler every week."

there's a whooshing sound from the window. minhyuk looks back at it to see the eye pull away, leaving room for a tentacle to press against the window again. kihyun raises a hand and waves, the charms on his bracelet jingling.

minhyuk pulls his boyfriend against his side with an arm around his waist and kisses his head. he doesn't think yoongi sent the squid, but he wishes he did.

~

a few long weeks of patience and cuddles later, minhyuk is thrilled to see some of the darkness that has been following kihyun begin to fade away.

they met up with yoongi in hogsmeade one saturday and it helped a lot; minhyuk felt a pang of jealousy when kihyun threw his arms around yoongi's shoulders in a hug, but he recognized how lost he would be in kihyun's shoes and tried to be mature about it.

the first thing out of yoongi's mouth when they sat down was a dry comment about kihyun's hair — last changed to a fresh silver by him before the school year ended, now horribly grown out and in desperate need of a wand flick. minhyuk hadn't wanted to bring it up because it really wasn’t a big deal and he didn’t want to make kihyun unnecessarily sad, but he's relieved yoongi did.

one night as they’re getting ready for bed, kihyun calls minhyuk’s name from where he stands, sulking in front of the mirror.

"what’s up, buttercup?" minhyuk chirps.

"can i trust you with a _colovaria_ charm or should i ask hyungwonnie?"

minhyuk stops with his shirt half off and turns to look at kihyun’s reflection with a pout. "my charms skills are better than yours and you know it."

"that’s not what i asked," kihyun says, a hint of challenge in his tone.

minhyuk rolls his eyes at the mirror. "i love you, but you’re so annoying," he replies, pulling his shirt over his head and tossing it on the trunk at the end of his old bed. "i’ve been thinking pink or blue."

minhyuk climbs into bed and pulls his most recent alchemy notes into his lap to review.

"you’ve been thinking pink or blue?" kihyun repeats, surprised.

"i’ve been waiting for this day for months, babe. i didn’t want to bug you about it, but i almost turned your hair pink on accident twice last week."

kihyun hums, thinking, as he makes his way to the bed. he crawls over minhyuk's legs, landing on his side between his boyfriend and the cats.

"i was thinking just black again."

"the cool thing about being wizards," minhyuk tells him, using his fingers to push kihyun's hair off his forehead, "is if you really hate the pink, i can make it black a second later."

kihyun closes his eyes. "don't want to move to check it. i trust you."

minhyuk pulls his wand from the nightstand and casts the charm, turning kihyun's hair the soft shade of pink his imagination has been haunted by. he can't help but let out a breathless "oh" after he does it, because he's incredibly gay and his boyfriend is incredibly adorable.

"good oh or bad oh?" kihyun asks, clearly on the edge of sleep.

minhyuk sets his wand and notes aside quickly before sliding down in the bed until they're nose to nose. he cups the side of kihyun's head with his hand and kisses him.

kihyun frowns when they separate. "that's not what i asked," he says again.

"i can change it in the morning if you don't like it, but i think it's nice. let me stare at you instead of my alchemy notes tonight."

"please don't."

"until you fall asleep?" he asks, reaching for kihyun's hand under the blankets and holding it loosely.

kihyun cracks an eye open and glares at him. "until i have no way of knowing if you're working or not, you mean."

"five minutes," minhyuk argues.

kihyun sighs. "good night, min."

minhyuk kisses him again, then waits for him to fall asleep before letting himself do the same.

~

the pink stays, much to minhyuk's delight. he finds it incredibly difficult to keep his hands away from it, though, to the point that kihyun makes them start doing some of their studying in their separate beds.

by the time the beginning of december rolls around, black roots are starting to become obvious. any time they're in the same room, minhyuk feels like a tightly wound ball of string being batted across the floor by a particularly sadistic feline.

he absolutely loves kihyun. he can't imagine wanting to be with anyone else. he loves sitting with him in silence or walking across the grounds as kihyun tells him about obscure magical creatures or literally sleeping together. but they've also been technically together for almost three years and haven't talked about or done anything other than blow jobs and hand stuff — recently, at that — and that was _fine_ , but the pink hair is really fucking him up.

hyungwon has the audacity to laugh at him when he confesses that he thinks he might be dying.

"minhyuk, look, you could talk to him, or you could just be patient. you're allowed to take care of yourself even if you're in a relationship."

minhyuk cringes. "that sounds so… pure and innocent."

"i assure you it's not, unless you—"

"stop, stop, i know, for merlin's sake."

hyungwon shrugs. "you know his comfort level better than i do. talk to him if you think he'd be open to it, i'm just saying you might want to start with walking the dog a little more."

minhyuk recoils instinctively, scrunching his nose and frowning. "walking the dog? gross."

"my mother used to say 'pulling your taffy'," hyungwon says matter-of-factly. "it was really confusing until my father told me she wasn't talking about the literal taffy i used to steal from the kitchen and carry in my pockets. i could never eat the stuff again after that."

"oh my god. thank you for your support, but please stop."

hyungwon shrugs again, and minhyuk changes the subject.

¤

later that night, he considers talking to kihyun, but he's not entirely sure what he wants to say and kihyun is studying and he doesn't want to interrupt him. he gathers his toiletries instead, along with a change of clothes.

kihyun watches him silently but with great interest and it makes him feel like a compressed spring.

"shower?" kihyun finally asks.

"huh?" minhyuk replies, a knee-jerk reaction before he's even processed the question he was asked.

kihyun's face gives nothing away that would help minhyuk process what he says next.

"can i come with you?"

minhyuk nearly drops the clothes he's holding on the floor.

"you don't need my permission to shower, babe," he tries, aiming for ambivalence.

kihyun rolls his eyes. "minhyuk, mon chien, would you allow me to join you in your shower?" he clarifies, very unnecessarily.

"what?" minhyuk asks, like an idiot, because his brain is rebooting.

"i've been thinking about blowing you for the last twenty minutes, but i needed to finish this," he explains, shutting his books and standing from the bed. his body is its own lie detector: true.

minhyuk is still rebooting, but has enough sense to nod.

kihyun smirks like he's unbelievably pleased with himself. he grabs a bathrobe and minhyuk's wrist before making his way down the hall.

~

the apparition ban is lifted briefly to allow seventh-years to leave for the holiday break, making the trip home much easier than usual. they pop into minhyuk's secluded backyard and make their way to the front of the house.

"my boys!" minhyuk's mother calls the moment they walk in the door. "minhyuk, bring your bags upstairs. kihyun, dear, come help me finish your trifle!"

kihyun and minhyuk exchange a look in the doorway and kihyun shrugs. he gives minhyuk a kiss on the cheek, squeezes his butt while he can, and heads to the kitchen, leaving his boyfriend with all of their belongings.

"hi, auntie," he says, smiling brightly in her direction as he starts washing his hands.

"your hair!" she gasps.

"what do you think?"

"does minhyuk's match?"

kihyun laughs. "no, his is normal," he replies, reaching for a towel.

"then i think it's lovely, dear," she tells him with a wink.

she starts working on the last layer of trifle, and kihyun is confused. "what do you need help with?"

"reach in my apron pocket. be quick."

kihyun tries to catch her eye for some explanation, but she's laser-focused on her dessert assembly, so he does as he's told. his fingers touch a small box.

"don't make this a big deal, love," she says as he pulls it out, fingers deftly working to spread whipped cream, "but that's my mother's wedding ring. you know i have no girls, but i thought minhyuk might like to have it, when the time is right. and maybe if you ever have... well, cross that road when you come to it."

kihyun is speechless, frozen still with the box in his hand in front of his chest.

after a moment, mrs. lee sighs. "dear, you're making it a big deal. come out of that head and put that in your pocket before he charges in here and sees it," she tells him, putting down her spatula and patting him on the shoulder comfortingly. "i found it tidying a drawer today, but you don't have to do anything with it until you're ready."

kihyun nods in understanding. he's surprised, but otherwise fine? he thinks, at least. he and minhyuk talk about the future, some times more seriously than others, but marriage never quite came into the conversation or crossed his mind. had it crossed minhyuk's?

kihyun clears his throat and stuffs the box in his pocket, unsure what to say. he settles on a thank you but it feels woefully inadequate.

"get the strawberries out of the fridge for me, will you?" she requests, moving on entirely.

kihyun smiles to himself because it's so _minhyuk_ — jarring subject changes and frantic energy — but he retrieves them and helps finish the trifle just as they hear minhyuk bounding down the stairs.

he rounds the corner and comes striding in with a pout on his face, whining about heavy bags. he stands between kihyun and his mother, putting his arms around their shoulders. he ducks to kiss his mother on the cheek, then kihyun.

"you're a twig, it's good for you," his mother says dismissively. she turns to look at kihyun. "right, dear?"

kihyun looks at minhyuk and grins when he tries to make his pout more exaggerated. "a cute twig."

¤

on christmas eve, as they gather around the small tree to distribute presents, there is a knock at the door.

minhyuk leaps to his feet and disappears. his parents glance at each other briefly. a lead ball settles itself in kihyun's stomach.

"kiki?" minhyuk calls. "come here, babe."

kihyun stands and makes his way to the foyer. minhyuk is waiting for him, expression a twisted mixture of concern and anger. his hand hangs at his side, fingers spread, and kihyun understands why when he sees his parents in the doorway: an offer of subtle support that would still make a point, but not a requirement.

the way he called kihyun in might've been overkill, but kihyun loves him so fucking much.

kihyun's mother is teary-eyed as she embraces him. she compliments his hair, and kihyun feels like he's floating in space without a tether, so he reaches around behind himself until he hits minhyuk's hand and slides their fingers together.

his parents keep his bank account in good standing, for which he knows he's lucky and is grateful, but this is the most he's seen of them in two years. he wishes he felt something more than ashamed for the disturbance to the lees’ christmas tradition.

"why are you here?" kihyun asks, polite but impatient.

kihyun’s mother sniffles as she steps back to his father’s side and looks at the floor. his father clears his throat and pulls a key out of his jacket pocket. there is a tag on it with some writing that kihyun can’t decipher.

"we understand why you don’t come home, kihyun," his father says, "but you’re still our son. we didn’t know when you might see us if not now."

"that’s not…" kihyun trails off and sighs heavily. minhyuk squeezes his hand. "i’m still standing here. what do you want?"

"we’d like you to accept this as your graduation present." he holds the key out for kihyun to take. "you’ll do well on your own, but you need a place without muggles to start." he shifts his weight awkwardly from one foot to the other. "both of you," he says, nodding once at minhyuk. "the address is on the tag there."

kihyun stares at the key, dumbfounded, and then laughs in disbelief. "you’re giving me a house."

"i’ll have the lawyers at the office send you the paperwork after you graduate, but it’s yours."

"nothing fancy," kihyun’s mother interjects, "just enough for you boys to get on your feet."

kihyun has no idea how to process a house as a gift, let alone one as weirdly backhanded as this. they suggest it's for minhyuk, too, but they can't even acknowledge that minhyuk's hand is clasped around his, preferring to avoid looking down at all. still, it's something, he supposes. either that or— "how many bedrooms?" he asks suddenly.

"two," his mother discloses, "but one could be an office or library or…"

"whatever you want, kihyun," his father finishes.

kihyun bites the inside of his cheek and tries not to tear up. he runs his thumb across minhyuk’s knuckles, trying to ground himself or ask for help or a hug or _something_. minhyuk gets it, because of course he does, and steps forward.

"thank you," he says, holding his hand out to kihyun’s father. there’s an edge to his voice that kihyun has never heard before and it’s somewhere between terrifying and extremely hot. "we appreciate it," he continues as they shake, "and we’re lucky to have your generosity."

kihyun glances up to stop the tears from falling and starts counting ceiling tiles.

"we were in the middle of something with my parents that we’d like to get back to, now," minhyuk tells them, stepping forward again so their only recourse is to open the door and walk through it, "if you don’t have anything else."

kihyun’s mother shakes her head and his father fiddles with his jacket before putting a hand on his wife’s elbow. she steps forward and hugs kihyun again, then turns and they both leave.

the door closes and minhyuk forces a long exhale. kihyun tugs on his hand to get him to turn around, then curls in on himself against minhyuk's chest, finally letting himself sob quietly.

"oh, babe," minhyuk says softly, completely abandoning the edge he used with kihyun’s father. kihyun keeps his eyes shut but feels minhyuk’s hand cup his cheek and he leans into it. "i’m so fucking sorry," he continues, wrapping his arms around kihyun’s back and kissing the top of his head. "but _us_. they’re giving _us_ a house."

kihyun shakes his head and sniffles. "what the fuck do i do with a house, min?" he asks, but it’s rhetorical and about more than the object itself.

what does he do with a house, sure, but what does he do with everything the house stands for? his parents abandoned him emotionally when he needed them the most, and now they just… give him and his boyfriend a house, and they’re so fucking cold about it that kihyun doesn’t know what they expect in return. are they saying they want to be in his life? is he supposed to try now? do they actually support him and minhyuk being together or are they doing what they think is right? does it even matter? does he want them in his life?

a loud sob escapes him and he buries his face deeper in minhyuk’s hoodie.

minhyuk sighs. "you need to breathe, ki. you don’t have to think about it right now or today or even this week, okay?" he slides his hands under kihyun’s shirt to the small of his back and rests them there, fingers spread. the skin-to-skin contact is jarring enough to prompt him to inhale deeply.

"good. ten minutes of cuddling, then we go back to presents?" minhyuk suggests.

kihyun nods against his shoulder.

"we’ll be back in fifteen minutes!" minhyuk calls out behind them, then he steers kihyun up the stairs to his room.

¤

they arrange to meet kihyun’s mother for lunch the day before they go back to school. kihyun hugs her tightly and minhyuk wants to give him the entire world, because to him, kihyun is light when it’s dark or his needle pointing north or any other cliche in the endless supply of cliches meant to describe someone you care so deeply about you need metaphors to make it sound as heavy as it feels.

she brings a photo album with her and opens it in the center of the table. inside are dozens upon dozens of photos of them as kids, and minhyuk feels his anger and sadness lodge itself in his throat.

"you two were always inseparable," she says, wistful. "we know we made mistakes, kihyun. we don’t…" she trails off, wringing her fingers together on the table, and minhyuk feels his muscles tighten. "your father and i were raised in a certain way, and we were carrying on the same way with you, but we never thought it might be the wrong way."

"mum, you don’t—" kihyun starts.

"i do, honey. you both need to hear at least one of us apologize," she says, locking eyes with minhyuk. "you’re as much my son as kihyun is your mother’s, minhyuk. i’m sorry if we hurt you in all of this, too."

minhyuk bites his lip. his own parents were supportive enough that he never thought about it as hurtful for him, but she’s not wrong. knowing kihyun’s parents were unwilling to accept them when his childhood was so full of love, even from them, wasn’t exactly an easy thing to wrap his head around. the apology is great, but it doesn’t change anything.

"what do you want from us?" minhyuk asks, reaching his breaking point. "because i’m sorry, but you basically told your son you don’t believe he can love me, but being a _wizard_ is okay. _magic_ is a less foreign concept to you than him being gay," minhyuk says, shaking his head to himself and laughing, because it’s fucking funny if you think about it, which he never really has. "then you very explicitly tell him the house is for us and suggest you’re very aware we share a bed, but oh, you don’t quite like it."

"min—" kihyun warns, but minhyuk ignores him.

"now you’ve got a photo album full of glaring evidence to anyone with eyes that we’ve loved each other for longer than we realized." he crosses his arms in front of his chest and leans back. "i have whiplash, here, mrs. yoo. the house is very generous. i know how well your husband’s business does overseas, so i’ve been telling kihyun we should take it, but _why_?"

kihyun’s head is in his hands. he refuses to look at either of them. kihyun’s mother stares at minhyuk and he softens, slightly, but refuses to break eye contact.

he’s just so tired.

kihyun’s mother sighs. "you’re right, of course. i realized we were being unreasonable when he didn’t come home for christmas last year. his father is working on it," she tells minhyuk, before turning to kihyun. "we’re trying, kihyun," she says emphatically, reaching across the table for one of her son’s hands. "the house doesn’t have strings, we just want you to have a home. we know our house isn’t that anymore, and i’m sorry for that."

kihyun drops his hands away from his face to reveal tears tracking down his cheeks. he stands, moving around the table to hug his mother, and minhyuk's heart breaks. after a few moments of sniffling, they break apart and he returns to minhyuk’s side. he leans his head against minhyuk’s shoulder and pulls his hand into his lap, playing with his fingers.

he clears his throat and announces out of nowhere, "our cats get along, now."

his mother carefully blots her eyes with a handkerchief that she pulls from her purse. "that’s great, dear," she replies after a moment. "have you boys thought about what you want to do for work?"

kihyun hums quietly, then starts telling her about how he’d like to work with dragons, if he can. minhyuk shares that he’d like to be a healer when she looks at him with interest, but for the most part he remains a silent pillar. he’s said his piece and it’s no longer about him, it’s about letting kihyun take control of a relationship that has been a brick tied to his ankles, drowning him, for far longer than he deserves.

~

"you’re home," kihyun tells him when they get back to the castle the next day. "you know that, right?"

they’re curled up in bed at three in the afternoon. everything is quiet without muggle electricity humming. minhyuk always forgets how weird that part of being at his parents’ house is. kihyun is tucked against his side, head on his shoulder, with minhyuk’s arm wrapped around his back. he’s been quiet since lunch with his mother. minhyuk has done his best to be there, but to avoid coddling him. it’s a fine line to walk.

"i do recall you telling me that at one point, yeah," minhyuk replies, absentmindedly tracing shapes on his shoulder with his thumb.

kihyun raises himself onto an elbow. he stretches and tries to kiss minhyuk, but only makes it as far as his chin, letting out an exaggerated whine that goes straight to minhyuk’s gut. he raises an eyebrow and kihyun doesn’t back down, so he slips his knee between kihyun’s legs and rolls them, pressing kihyun into the bed with his weight. he arches his neck, pouting, and minhyuk nips his lower lip before slotting their mouths together. kihyun whines again, and minhyuk isn’t sure what game they’re playing, but he breaks away smiling.

"i love you, too, by the way" minhyuk tells him.

kihyun whimpers and tries to wiggle his hips. he lets out of a frustrated growl when he can’t get very far because of their position. "kiss me, fuck me, do _something_ or so help me god, minhyuk."

minhyuk feels like someone hit his reset button. "ki…" he says carefully.

"i said what i said," kihyun answers, obstinate. "if you want to," he adds, staring minhyuk down.

"i love you," minhyuk tells him again, because he doesn't really know what else to say.

kihyun wrestles an arm free and brings a hand up to minhyuk's face, pushing his hair back. "i love you, too, min. more than nifflers love shiny things," he says, grinning.

minhyuk laughs, sitting back on his knees to pull his shirt off, then leans in again and kisses him hard.

~

it turns out that being inside kihyun is pretty addictive, especially after the emotional toll the break took on them both. it takes a couple of weeks to get their study schedule back on track, but they get there eventually.

kihyun starts writing to his mother again, exchanging letters with her every week. he worries — minhyuk can tell by the way his chin wrinkles — every tuesday when the owls fly in, but she hasn't let him down. minhyuk figures he might owe her an apology, eventually, because she does seem to be trying.

yoongi sends a howler on valentine's day, telling kihyun — and the rest of the great hall — to "pay attention to your boyfriend." he's mortified, but minhyuk falls out of his seat and laughs himself to tears on the floor next to jimin.

winter slowly winds down, with exams around the corner and graduation right behind it, and minhyuk feels content with all of it. kihyun is doing much better, their relationship is solid, and overall he can't wait to start the next chapter of their lives.

~

in march, kihyun lets minhyuk turn his hair blue. they end up finding the room of requirement the same day when minhyuk can't stop thinking about kihyun fucking him against a mirror — he blames the hair — and kihyun is apparently craving italian food, leading to a very interesting evening.

cooking together is something minhyuk looks forward to doing more, he realizes.

kihyun rolls his eyes when minhyuk tells him as much, in the middle of quizzing each other on history of magic facts in hogsmeade with hyungwon the next night.

"do i want to know why you're mentioning this now?" hyungwon asks, squinting at minhyuk.

"probably not," kihyun says dryly.

"don't squint too hard or you might see something you shouldn't," minhyuk quips.

hyungwon waves his hand in the air. "i already know about the room of requirement. adventurous for you two and it makes me so proud, but someone list the dates of the goblin rebellions so we can move on, please."

"you know, divination has made you cranky," minhyuk says flippantly.

"feeling your sexual exploits because you're hopelessly horny has made me cranky," hyungwon shoots back. "goblin rebellions, _please_."

kihyun pats minhyuk's knee sympathetically, answers him, and they continue around the circle, shooting questions at each other until the pub closes.

~

n.e.w.t.s approach quicker than they expect. they end up in a similar routine as they did during their o.w.l.s. minhyuk needs more n.e.w.t.s than kihyun, technically, so while kihyun is an overachiever and _wants_ them, minhyuk carries more of the stress throughout their exam weeks. nutmeg makes herself readily available for nervous petting, kihyun makes it a point to shower him in extra affection and support, and they make it through without any meltdowns.

graduation is an emotional affair. they go through a day of ceremony, including taking the boats back across the lake like they did when they arrived for their first year. minhyuk spends the whole ride staring into the water, looking for the giant squid. kihyun holds onto his arm so he doesn't fall in, and almost wishes he had the ring minhyuk's mother gave him, because he knows in that moment there's nowhere he'd rather be than by this idiot's side for the rest of their lives.

they intend to celebrate with hyungwon and jooheon, but changkyun tags along to meet up with hoseok, and they run into jimin and yoongi already at the pub celebrating jimin's o.w.l.s, or maybe just having a normal night, minhyuk isn't sure.

"aren't we a merry band of delinquents," hyungwon deadpans when everyone is in one place.

"don't be mean, wonnie," jooheon says, turning his head where he's perched in hyungwon's lap to peck his nose.

"some of us have graduated, thanks," yoongi scoffs, "we're not the ones with the curfew."

"hey, uncalled for," jimin whines, looking to the person on his other side for support.

changkyun is leaned back against hoseok's chest in the corner of the booth, hoseok's arms around his middle, and he just shrugs.

"sorry, baby, but it's true," yoongi says.

"i'm one of the graduated ones, smartass," hyungwon says, laughing.

minhyuk feels warm and tipsy and so relaxed, surrounded by their friends and all their disgusting love. kihyun's head rests on his shoulder and he's playing with minhyuk's fingers absentmindedly like he does.

"kihyun's parents gave us a house," he blurts, and everyone turns to stare at them. minhyuk tears up unexpectedly. "everyone promise me you'll come see us," he says, looking at yoongi and hyungwon. "hoseok, you're welcome to come, too. promise we can get together like this after jimin and changkyun graduate, but at our house instead," he finishes, openly sniffling at this point.

kihyun holds his face in his hands and wipes his cheeks with his thumbs. "at least come for the wedding," kihyun jokes to the table, and minhyuk's eyes widen.

"oh, come on, don't be so shocked," he says, rolling his eyes in exasperation. "i'm not asking now, but of course i want to marry you."

"revolting. absolutely revolting," hyungwon groans. "you guys are so lucky you didn't have to put up with this shit for all seven years," he says, looking around the table. he gets to yoongi and bows his head before continuing, "you lived next door to it for six and i respect the hell out of you."

yoongi nods solemnly at hyungwon and jimin kisses him on the cheek.

minhyuk sniffles. "i'm just going to miss you guys."

"end of an era, minhyuk, but not the end of the world, or us," hyungwon says confidently. "i promise."

~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i didn't intend to end this like that, but hyungwon just went for it and i'm weak for him and it felt really, really fitting, so.
> 
> !!! they're DONE. epilogue of future firsts soonish. this has been one hell of a ride and i miss them in hogwarts already. thank you to everyone who has been there and left comments or screamed privately.
> 
> if you're curious, this is what my list of key plot points ended up looking like:  
> 1 train ride / night in the dorm / trip to the owlery / birthdays  
> 2 thestrals / cat fight  
> 3 sneaking off on brooms / hogsmeade trip / bludger to the face  
> 4 time min is finally taller / kisses (not each other) / failed potion brew / kisses (def each other - owlery trip)  
> 5 time they fight / ki coming out to his parents / quidditch win / o.w.l.s  
> 6 yule ball / holiday spent at the castle / apparition / firewhisky  
> 7 giant squid / min changing ki’s hair / ki’s parents are finally civilized human beings / newts / graduation  
> fun fact minhyuk and hyungwon were supposed to make out in four but hyungwon Was Not Having It haha.
> 
> OH side note haha kihyun's dad is like. a real estate developer and absolutely loaded. i never explicitly mentioned that anywhere but that's where the whole house thing came from.


	8. epilogue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> longer break than i had planned but i had some stuff to get out of my head. the epilogue of disgusting fluff lives!
> 
> this is for myself, and also them bc they deserve it, and everyone that stuck with a wip when i was writing. you guys are awesome.
> 
> rating bumped up bc i kinda crossed the sex line but there's nothing crazy smutty.

_+two days_  
  
  
their house is tucked away at the end of a cul-de-sac, away from traffic and prying eyes. 

the outside is surrounded by new hedges and recently planted trees with thick trunks that will inevitably grow to provide exceptional cover to the two-floor, brick cottage, especially with some help.

minhyuk tears up when he sees it, because how can he not? it's been an emotional week of exams and ceremony and changing lives. kihyun, somehow, remains stoic, holding minhyuk's hand tightly as they walk to the door.

the inside is larger than he expects. it's furnished with a mixture of pieces that look like they were left by the last inhabitant, possibly some time around 1982, with the exception of a baby grand piano that looks brand new — likely the only purchase made. kihyun gravitates to it, running his fingers over the top like it might disappear if he's not careful. it overwhelms minhyuk with a confusing wave of emotion and a laugh bubbles out of him, immediately followed by a sob.

"you okay?" kihyun asks, returning to his side.

"yeah, yeah, i'm fine," minhyuk replies, wiping at his eyes. "they didn't give us a bunch of fancy furniture. we can turn it all into anything we want. and that piano. they really want it to be yours."

"ours, min."

"shut up. i'm happy for you. you deserve this."

"yeah, i really do, don't i?" kihyun sighs.

they smile at each other like idiots for a moment. kihyun kisses him quickly then turns away.

"come on, more house to see," he decides, tugging minhyuk through the room by his hoodie pocket.

¤

hyungwon shows up with nutmeg and pandora just as they finish their walk through the place, having agreed to bring the cats in his car and help with some of the spells.

"minhyuk, your mother says to call her to let her know your kids got here in one pi—" he calls out on his way in, cutting himself off when he crosses the threshold and takes in the space. "oh, this is perfect for you two! we can do so much with it."

"wait until you see the _kitchen_ ," minhyuk gushes. "we've been talking about what to do but wanted to get your input."

"yeah, def—"

a loud meow grabs their attention, and hyungwon frowns as he puts the carriers down. "can we let them out?"

"ki wanted to make some structural changes for them. he’s upstairs plotting, but we were waiting for you because of the extension charm. it’s easier to explain if you see it," minhyuk rattles off excitedly.

"sorry, babies," hyungwon coos at the floor.

another loud meow.

minhyuk squats down and says hello to the cats, explaining that he’ll let them out in a few minutes. they both blink at him and then shove their heads into the back of their carriers. 

he stands, shrugs, and claps his hands together. "upstairs!"

¤

an hour later, the two small bedrooms have been expanded to create a large master suite and bathroom with a free-standing bathtub, walk-in shower, and — after a brief argument about how much _stuff_ minhyuk has in his toiletries bag — separate side-by-side sinks.

while minhyuk and hyungwon were focusing on most of the charms, kihyun transfigured furniture and constructed an elaborate system of connecting stairs, ramps and platforms on the walls — starting at the floor and leading all the way up to the ceiling — for the cats.

minhyuk finishes his work upstairs with a skylight in the hall above the circular staircase, because kihyun loves stars, and after living in a lake for the last seven years, he figures they could use the light.

it’s exhausting, but incredibly fun. minhyuk loves every second of it.

downstairs, kihyun decides to create tunnels through the floor to connect the stairs and ramps on both levels. he’s in his own little world, brow furrowed in concentration as he points his wand this way and that. minhyuk watches him for a few seconds and considers suggesting he might be going overboard, but his emotions quickly overwhelm him again. he sniffles and hyungwon turns to him with a small, amused smile.

"how much did you cry before i got here?" he asks.

"a little," minhyuk admits, elbowing his friend in the side. "i love him and he’s happy and look at him, you know?"

"disgusting. should we go figure out what to do about that greenhouse you want?"

minhyuk wipes his eyes and nods once. "i’ll be right there," he says, and hyungwon leaves as minhyuk makes his way across the room to kihyun. he wraps himself around his boyfriend’s back and kisses the side of his neck, then whispers "i love you" in his ear.

all he gets in return is a mumbled "you, too," but he smiles anyway.

"wonnie and i are going to go deal with the backyard. let the cats out when you’re done, babe."

"almost done, i think," kihyun tells him, leaning back into minhyuk’s chest and flicking his wand at the fireplace to create a wide platform high above the mantle. "oh, i wanted to ask you—" he starts, and after another flick a large, crescent moon-shaped bed-scratching post hybrid appears on the wall next to the fireplace, in a small corner of the room that currently has an overstuffed chair and a reading lamp. he turns his head and raises an eyebrow at minhyuk, looking for his approval.

minhyuk takes the opportunity to peck him on the lips, flicking his wand at the same time to transform the reading lamp into a chandelier of small, star-like fixtures. "let’s put all the glow-in-the-dark stars over there, too," he suggests, "and then it’ll be perfect."

kihyun hums and adds a couple of tall bookcases before turning in minhyuk’s arms, satisfied.

"i need to go help hyungwon, but i love you," minhyuk tells him.

"you said that already."

"oops," minhyuk says, shrugging.

he’d tell kihyun he loves him every second of the day, if he could.

minhyuk kisses him on the nose, because he’s tall enough that he can and it makes kihyun mad, then walks away.

¤

by the time the sun sets, everything is mostly done.

they keep the kitchen mostly the same, full of colorful tiles and so at odds with the rest of the house, but too quirky for either of them to want to change. kihyun wins the argument about appliances, though, and upgrades them all, in addition to adding a flap in the rear door for the cats to come and go as they please. a portion of the wall is removed to connect a new greenhouse in the backyard for minhyuk's plants and potion-making supplies.

they take a break so that minhyuk can call his mother to assure her that everything is fine. they get some pizza delivered — a new thing for hyungwon, to minhyuk’s abject horror — and watch nutmeg and pandora explore their new space, all three of them with dumb grins on their faces.

it’s wonderful. still not very fancy, with a few exceptions, but minhyuk adores it and kihyun looks lighter than he has in years.

hyungwon leaves eventually, making them promise to get some sleep. after saying goodbye to him at the door, kihyun drags minhyuk upstairs by his hoodie pocket again and tries to deposit him in bed.

"i need a shower," minhyuk whines.

"you did nothing in the way of physical exercise today."

"all the wand flicking was _so_ difficult," he complains. "and i came up here like half a dozen times."

kihyun narrows his eyes at him. "you just want to try the shower."

"you _don’t_ want to try the shower? i may need to rethink this living with you thing."

"i was going to put you to bed first. you did some heavy spells today."

"not tired," minhyuk whines again. he holds his hands out and says, "help me up," completely seriously, and kihyun does it without mocking his obvious lie. minhyuk drops one hand but hangs onto the other, dragging kihyun behind him to the bathroom.

he pulls his own hoodie and shirt over his head, steps out of his pants, and moves towards kihyun to help him with his clothes, because he’s just standing there watching him and not making any effort to get undressed.

"min…"

"shhh, i’m too sleepy to bicker. it’s a big shower. no sex, just..." minhyuk trails off. he can’t really verbalize what he wants, he just knows he doesn’t want to be away from kihyun long enough for them to shower separately, not right now.

kihyun searches his face and seems to understand. he nods, leaning up to drop a kiss on minhyuk’s cheek, and leaves his own clothes in a pile on the floor.

~

_  
+ten months  
_

"kiki? what are you doing?"

"making cookies."

"honey, it's two in the morning."

"can't sleep."

kihyun _should_ be asleep. he was sent home to sleep. but there is a dragon egg that could hatch any day now, and he's too nervous to do anything resembling self-care. he'd probably be wasting away to a smelly pile of bones if minhyuk didn't remind him to shower and eat.

"why didn't you wake me up?"

kihyun busies himself with folding chocolate chips into his cookie dough. a handful of seconds pass before he answers, "you have to work in the morning. i didn't want both of us to be tired. i'll come to bed after i bake these."

minhyuk sighs, then pulls himself up onto the counter to sit. he leans over to pick a stray chocolate chip off the side of kihyun's bowl and drops it on his tongue.

"you know," he says, "i can think of better ways to destress than baking, and you wouldn't have had to leave the bedroom."

kihyun stares at him, trying to convey general exhaustion with his seemingly limitless sex drive, but he doesn't mean it and minhyuk can tell. minhyuk can always tell.

"you're insufferable," kihyun says, shaking his head.

"i'm delightful."

"move your legs, i need to get under you."

minhyuk raises an eyebrow at him, smirk firmly in place, but he pulls his legs up so kihyun can get parchment from the drawer he's sitting over.

"the egg might hatch tonight," kihyun tells him as he scoops dough onto his lined baking sheets. "i don't know why i'm so anxious."

"it's a big deal," minhyuk says, sympathetic. "i feel the same way about my plants when they're about to sprout, you know this. that's why i wish you'd woken me up."

"you've been dealing with me all week."

"yep," minhyuk agrees, smacking his lips to enunciate the end of the word. "love makes people stupid, what can i say," he deadpans, swiping his finger into the bowl and grabbing some cookie dough when kihyun is switching his full baking sheet for an empty one and can't stop him.

not that he would.

he might pretend to try, but it would be futile. minhyuk's favorite pastime is annoying him in the kitchen, and kihyun secretly doesn't mind one bit. it's nice to have the company. adjusting to being separated because of work had been a challenge after so many years of being together almost all the time. it took a lot of patience and a couple of big, stupid fights for them to figure it out.

minhyuk gets to sit on the counters and talk kihyun’s ear off when he’s cooking.

kihyun gets a silent minhyuk in his arms for the entire length of one movie of his choosing once a week.

they take a lot of baths.

compromise is important.

after portioning out all of the dough and giving minhyuk the last extra spoonful, he slides the trays into the oven and sets the timer. when he turns around, minhyuk slips off the counter and holds his arms open. kihyun steps into them, leans his forehead on minhyuk's shoulder, and lets his boyfriend wrap him in a hug.

he’s had another small, late growth spurt recently and kihyun will never forgive him.

"how do you feel about a bath?" minhyuk asks, one hand situated on kihyun's back and the other lightly kneading the muscles in his neck. "i could go draw one, and i'll even let you take it alone if you want."

it's after two, kihyun has barely slept in days, and minhyuk's fingers are very good at what they do.

these aren't the reasons he says what he says, but all together they're probably the reason he says it _when_ he does.

"marry me," he mumbles, right into minhyuk's shoulder.

minhyuk freezes, moving his hand from kihyun's neck, and kihyun whimpers at the loss.

"can you repeat that?"

"really?"

"i need to make sure i heard you."

kihyun groans and lifts his head, glaring briefly before he moves to a small drawer next to the sink. it’s one full of miscellany that minhyuk never opens himself and he digs around in the back until his fingers land on the box minhyuk's mother gave him a couple of years ago.

when he turns around again, minhyuk is staring at him. he almost looks amused, leaning against the counter, but his eyes widen a fraction when he sees what kihyun has in his hands.

"i said marry me, you brat," kihyun says, rolling his eyes and opening the box to reveal the interwoven band, inlaid with small diamonds and emeralds. "there hasn't been a single day where i haven't thought i want to be with you forever since we moved in. your mother gave me this two years ago. i mentioned our wedding right after graduation. you _knew_ this was inevitable."

minhyuk crosses his arms in front of his chest and tries to pout. "it's the middle of the night and i'm standing in our kitchen in nothing but boxers and a zippered hoodie."

"yes, i had noticed."

"you can't just—"

"too late."

"how do i tell anyone this story?"

kihyun shrugs, biting the inside of his cheek so he doesn't laugh.

"you did this on purpose."

"i didn't," kihyun protests, "but i kind of wish i had. i think about asking all the time. consider yourself lucky i didn't do it when you bottomed out in me the other night. we definitely would have had to lie to your parents about that one."

"oh, my god."

"you can make up any story you want and i’ll go along with it."

"in that case, yes, obviously," minhyuk says, trying to maintain his pout.

the oven timer beeps, and kihyun sighs. he puts the box on the counter behind minhyuk, leaning into his space as a challenge, but he stays put, so kihyun plays along and backs away to pull his cookies out. he spends a minute moving them to a cooling rack, his back turned to minhyuk the whole time, taking the opportunity to smile to himself because minhyuk said yes.

he knew minhyuk would say yes, but it's still a nice development.

when the last cookie is moved, he wipes the grin off his face and turns back around. minhyuk is still leaning against the counter where he left him, melodramatic pout in place. kihyun reaches for his hand and tugs him out of the kitchen anyway. minhyuk drags his feet obnoxiously until they round the counter, then he giggles and launches himself at kihyun's back.

the sound makes kihyun's stomach flip, even after all this time.

~

_  
+two years  
_

they get married in the spring.

hyungwon shows up three days beforehand and sets up a tent in their backyard.

kihyun doesn’t ask.

jooheon pops in a day later after quidditch practice, all bright red hair and smiling eyes and dimples. he brings a bag of enchanted cat toys with him, much to the cats’ delight. he and hyungwon spend the night exhausting the animals and themselves, apparently; all four of them fall asleep in front of the fireplace, hyungwon a little spoon with pandora in his arms and nutmeg perched on jooheon’s shoulder.

minhyuk takes _so many pictures_ with one of the disposable cameras kihyun’s mother insisted they use in the days leading up the wedding — for hyungwon, he says, but kihyun knows better.

hoseok and yoongi arrive the day before, with changkyun and jimin tucked next to their respective boyfriends. the two look dead on their feet, leaning into hoseok and yoongi for support, and minhyuk immediately ushers them inside like a mother hen for food and a new, highly-caffeinated potion he’s been working on.

kihyun barely remembers preparing for their n.e.w.t.s, but he honestly hopes he and minhyuk didn’t look as zombie-like as their two youngest friends.

it’s nice, though, having their tiny house full of their favorite people again.

¤

kihyun cooks an easter feast: a mix of traditional muggle fare and some wizard favorites. hoseok and yoongi hover around the kitchen under the guise of offering assistance. kihyun tells them it’s unnecessary but they don’t leave, leading him to suspect it’s actually to get away from their stressed-out other halves, so he gives them tasks to keep them busy.

after dinner, minhyuk manages to drag changkyun and jimin away from their studying for drinks and relaxation.

hoseok claims a chair and changkyun claims his lap. kihyun and hyungwon occupy opposite ends of the couch, with minhyuk and jooheon sideways on their laps, periodically kicking each other. jimin curls up against yoongi’s side where he’s sat in front of the fireplace, nutmeg napping at their feet.

there are life updates and laughter and an ill-advised game of truth or dare that ends after kihyun dares minhyuk to kiss hyungwon, and he does — crawling over a flailing jooheon to plant a loud, sloppy kiss right on hyungwon’s lips.

minhyuk apologizes when he and kihyun are getting ready for bed, even though it was kihyun’s dare, and kihyun assures him it’s okay, patiently taking him apart with his hands and mouth before slowly filling him — "for the last time before our sex life goes downhill," if minhyuk’s previous histrionics are to be believed. kihyun doesn’t buy it, but he’ll use any excuse he can to make minhyuk moan his name.

he does it again in the morning, just to be contrary, fingering himself open while kissing minhyuk awake, taking him in his mouth and working him over until he's begging, riding him until kihyun is the one that falls apart and minhyuk flips them to finish himself.

"okay, fine, maybe our sex life will survive marriage," minhyuk concedes in between heavy breaths after he flops onto his side.

kihyun laughs, breathless, and kisses minhyuk on the forehead before getting out of bed. he showers, pulls on a hoodie and sweatpants, wakes minhyuk for a second time to usher him into the shower, and heads downstairs to start breakfast, only to find yoongi standing over the stove.

"morning," yoongi greets. "just made fresh coffee. i hope you don’t mind me raiding your fridge, but jimin is already in study mode," he says, sighing at the end of it.

"please, it’s fine. you’re welcome in my kitchen any time, you know that," kihyun tells him as he heads to the coffee machine, ogling the massive quantity of kimchi fried rice yoongi is cooking — in two separate pans — over his shoulder on the way.

"there’s plenty. figured i’d make enough for everyone since i was already here."

"i know min will be grateful," kihyun says, pouring himself a cup of coffee. "is that second pan for changkyunnie and hyungwon?"

"yeah, i got a little carried away."

"i’m sure they’ll appreciate it."

yoongi has softened in the last year or so, since starting a new job at the ministry working with orphaned wizard-born children. it was a crazy step for him to take, nowhere near what he had planned on when leaving school, but it seems to suit him. he looks happy every time kihyun sees him, at least, and he’s more inclined to take care of everyone when they’re together, even if it’s in small ways like making sure hyungwon and changkyun have a less spicy version of kimchi fried rice available for breakfast.

"i can’t believe you’re getting married," yoongi confesses, then turns off the stovetop and leans back against the counter with his coffee in his hands.

"we’ve basically been married since we were sixteen and i told my parents i was gay," kihyun says, shrugging. "this is more a formality than anything else."

"and an excuse to get us all together for a party."

"i just missed your cooking," kihyun quips, winking at him.

yoongi smirks, putting his mug down to fetch a plate from the cabinet. "i’m happy for you guys." he says, removing a portion of rice from the pan.

"thanks. who do you think will be next?"

"hyungwon and jooheon?" yoongi suggests.

"really? i thought you'd say you and jimin."

"we're still young and stupid. maybe in a year or two. could you get me a coffee?"

"that's fair," kihyun says, moving to fetch another mug and filling it, sliding it in yoongi's direction on the counter.

"i’ll be right back," yoongi tells him, and then he heads outside, plate and mug in hand.

kihyun scoops some rice and eggs into a bowl for himself before taking it around the island to sit and eat. minhyuk comes downstairs a few seconds later, gives him a sideways hug, and steals a sip of his coffee before getting his own cup and bowl and joining him for breakfast, all in silence.

they have to be at the church in about six hours, but he feels completely calm. his vows have been memorised for weeks. his mother will be there, and minhyuk’s parents, and all the people currently inside the — presumably magic — tent in his backyard. there’s nothing more he could wish for.

¤

the hours pass quickly, and before kihyun realizes, they're on the way to the church. all tradition has been thrown out the window. he and minhyuk refuse to be separated, despite hyungwon's attempts due to his obsession with muggle ceremonies, and ride there together. they change into their tuxedos in the same dressing room, fixing each other's bowties and hair, then sit together quietly as the clock ticks away.

minhyuk idly plays with the charms on kihyun's bracelet. yoongi has added to it over the years, a dragon and a cauldron joining the other charms in keeping a record of kihyun and minhyuk's relationship. kihyun doesn't take it off. he tried, once, and minhyuk complained so much about not having anything to play with when they were watching a movie that kihyun paused it to go get the thing from their bedroom.

his mother drops in, a few minutes before the ceremony is due to start. she apologizes to both of them for kihyun's father's absence, but kihyun isn't surprised and he knows minhyuk isn't either. they invited them both, and kihyun's father has warmed slightly over the last two years, but he's still not at a point where they expected he would willingly attend a gay wedding in a church, of all places.

she hugs them both before leaving, and minhyuk checks his watch.

"you still want to marry me?" he asks.

"nah," kihyun deadpans.

"too bad," minhyuk replies, unaffected. "it's time to go."

¤

there's no music, no waiting at the altar, no one giving anyone away. they walk out, hand-in-hand, and greet the minister and then their small audience. the minister gives a short introduction about why they're there and how great love is, probably. minhyuk doesn't hear any of it, not until his name is said again.

"minhyuk and kihyun have their own vows. who would like to go first?"

"we're playing for it," minhyuk announces. he looks at kihyun, mouths "three, two, one," and they both throw paper — their hands flat — in the space between them. he does it again, and kihyun wins with a rock against minhyuk's scissors.

"kihyun, then," the minister says warmly.

kihyun holds minhyuk's hands tightly, rubbing his thumbs over his knuckles nervously. he takes a deep breath, then begins to speak.

"you've been my best friend since we could barely talk. i spent a long time trying to find a significant memory that doesn't have you in it, and i couldn't come up with anything. you've been by my side for so long, pushing my buttons but also pushing me to be better. you're patient with me even when i don't deserve it. you love me even when i don't love myself. you know me better than anyone, and let me get away with nothing, and i'm not sure who i would be without you.

"you're my home, minhyuk. you always have been, and always will be. i love you more than i'll ever be able to tell you. i'm so lucky, and i never plan on forgetting it, but i know even if i do, you'll remind me," kihyun finishes, minhyuk’s eyes flooding with tears as he does. "and i'm really sorry for making you cry right now," kihyun adds quickly, swiping a thumb across minhyuk's cheek, "because you have to speak after this, but you did lose rock-paper-scissors, so it's not my fault."

minhyuk chokes out a laugh and kihyun shrugs.

there are some sniffles from the pews, but minhyuk has no idea who it is.

it doesn't matter.

"when you're ready, minhyuk," the minister says, nodding at him.

he takes a few seconds to collect himself. kihyun wipes away his tears before holding his hands again, eyes never once leaving his.

"i had something long prepared, but standing here, none of it matters," minhyuk starts, shaking his head. "i'll let you read it later. all that matters is that i love you. you're a piece of me, kihyun. i miss you when you go out of town. i miss you when you run to the store for milk. we've had our rough patches and i know we'll have more, and they'll probably be really dumb because we're us, but i have never once thought it wasn't worth it. i'm endlessly proud of you, and proud to be with you, and i'll be your home for as long as you'll have me. i love you to the moon and back — one of jupiter's. more than pandora loves murdering mice. more than nifflers love shiny things."

kihyun smiles so hard at the inside joke that his cheeks hurt.

"you're the most incredible person, and i'm never going to stop wanting to give you the entire world. if i forget, _please_ remind me."

kihyun nods at him and squeezes his hands. his eyes are moist, but minhyuk sticks his tongue out briefly and it makes him — and the minister — laugh quietly.

they move through the "i do" portion of the event, but minhyuk feels like they're on autopilot, only breaking out of it when they hear the word "kiss." the syllable barely registers in his mind before kihyun is pulling him in, whoops and whistles and clapping coming from their audience, kissing him like his life depends on it.

¤

kihyun groans.

after the ceremony, everyone returned to the house. kihyun and minhyuk changed out of their tuxedos and into more casual suits while jooheon, changkyun and jimin entertained their parents inside and hyungwon, yoongi and hoseok turned the backyard into a venue fit for a reception, complete with dance floor.

and then the doorbell rang, and kihyun’s mother looked at him guiltily, and now they’re sitting on the floor in the linen closet in their bathroom.

"you realize how funny it is that you’re hiding from your father in a closet, right, babe?" minhyuk asks, clearly amused.

"yes, it had occurred to me, but thanks for pointing it out."

"look, i’ll sit here with you for as long as you want, but he’s about an hour too late to stop us from going through with it," minhyuk says, twisting his new wedding band around on his finger, "so i really don’t think it’ll be that bad."

"probably not, but we've had such a good day. he couldn't come to the wedding but the party is okay? i'm tired of it, min. we've been together for five years. he's known for over four."

minhyuk sighs and wraps an arm around his shoulder, tugging him closer. "you're allowed to be tired, but he _has_ been trying. he loves you. maybe this is the most he could do, you know?"

"i know," kihyun mumbles, pulling his knees to his chest and turning into minhyuk’s side. "you’re right."

"honestly, i want to see his reaction to our lovely bunch of very gay friends, don't you?"

"hyungwon _has_ been clingy with jooheon since we left the church."

"exactly, and if changkyun starts drinking you _know_ he's going to end up in hoseok's lap. it could be a good time."

kihyun snorts and shakes his head against minhyuk’s shoulder.

"tell me when you’re ready. we can rumple our clothes, mess up our hair, and walk downstairs holding hands so everyone thinks we were making out, if you want," minhyuk offers.

"are we the most boring newlyweds on the planet for _not_ making out right now?" kihyun asks, turning his face to look up at his husband.

 _husband_ , he thinks. _fucking wild_.

"do you want to make out right now?" minhyuk challenges, raising an eyebrow. "because we can."

kihyun straightens slightly and gives him a "stop being a menace" glare. "i love you, but no," he says.

"you look incredible, don’t shame me for asking."

he rolls his eyes, kisses minhyuk on the corner of his mouth, and stands. he holds a hand out, which minhyuk takes, allowing himself to be hauled up off the floor. kihyun unnecessarily straightens the lapels of minhyuk’s jacket and takes a deep breath. he doesn’t want to deal with his father, but in the grand scheme of things, it’s not what he should be dwelling on today.

"you good?" minhyuk asks.

"i’ve got you. i’m good," kihyun confirms, reaching one hand out behind him for minhyuk’s and the other in front of him for the doorknob. "let’s get this over with."

¤

it’s not great, but it's not as bad as he expects, either.

hyungwon throws a cautious glance at them when they appear on the stairs, but he nods encouragingly after kihyun makes eye contact. between minhyuk at his back and their seer friend not screaming at him to run, he feels relatively confident. he scans the room and finds his parents chatting with yoongi and jimin, so they make their way over.

his father lights up when he sees them, in a way kihyun can’t remember him ever doing. he almost stops dead in his tracks, but minhyuk directs him gently with his hands on his waist until they’re close enough to speak.

"we were just talking about how you boys have some spoiled cats," his father says, stepping to the side to make room for them in the bubble of conversation. "yoongi says you did all of this, kihyun?"

"i did. how are you, dad?" kihyun asks, polite but strained, as usual.

"enjoying meeting your friends and seeing what you’ve done with the place."

minhyuk makes a noise behind him — a kind of brief, quiet growl. kihyun feels him start to take a step forward, and then hyungwon’s voice rings out, asking everyone to please make their way to the backyard for food and cake and dancing.

kihyun’s mother smiles at him and touches minhyuk on the shoulder before turning to jimin. "would you escort me, dear?" she asks.

jimin nods, taking mrs. yoo by the arm and leading her out of the room. kihyun’s father follows, and jimin shoots an apologetic look at yoongi and kihyun over his shoulder as they leave.

"say the word and i'll get my wand," minhyuk grumbles.

yoongi coughs beside them. "i didn't hear that."

kihyun sighs. "i'd prefer you not be hauled off by the ministry before we consummate our marriage, min, but i know and i love you for it. i also really want to shove cake in your face, so let's go."

¤

during dinner, kihyun’s father — a man that naturally commands respect when he wants it — taps his glass, clears his throat, and the entire backyard is silenced.

everyone turns their heads to look at him except hyungwon, who gives minhyuk a worried glance instead. minhyuk furrows his brow at hyungwon and places his hand on kihyun’s knee under the table.

"hello, everyone. i’d like to say a few words, if that’s okay with my son."

minhyuk feels kihyun’s thigh tense under his fingertips, but he nods at his father, and he continues.

"kihyun was a quiet, reserved child. when he was small, his mother and i moved away from the city. we visited our new neighbors to introduce ourselves, only to find they also had a toddler, born just before ours. their boy came to the door with his mother, clinging to her skirt. kihyun was in my wife's arms, and he and the neighbor boy waved at each other. my wife put kihyun down and the boy screeched with excitement, took his hand, and dragged him into the house. today, those same boys are sitting here with us all."

kihyun's father gestures in their direction with his glass. minhyuk smiles slightly at the story — it's one he's heard before — but his insides twist with concern for kihyun's emotional state. he gives his knee a gentle squeeze, reminding him he's there during his father's brief pause.

"i was raised in a conservative house, i've spent my life building a business, and many times that meant i wasn't the best father. my wife will be the first to tell you that i'm a stubborn, close-minded man, and i missed more piano recitals and football games than i can count. i regret it.

"i've learned today that all of you are part of couples, and if i could give you some unsolicited advice for any future children, it's this: love them, with all your heart, no matter what happens, and don't let yourself miss the recitals and the games. to live is to evolve — it doesn't stop when you hit a certain age — and nothing at work is more important than those moments."

kihyun takes minhyuk's hand, clasping their fingers together, and pulls his arm upwards. minhyuk places it around his shoulders without thinking, fingers still joined, and scans kihyun's face for emotion. he spots a tear rolling down his cheek, so he wipes it away. he considers stopping the speech because kihyun is staring at his father with mild contempt, but he can't bring himself to let go of him long enough to do so.

at least their wands are upstairs.

"equally important is all the moments they'll have when they grow up, and i failed there, just today. kihyun, minhyuk, i apologize for not being at the ceremony. seeing you here, now, i realize there is no good explanation i can offer you or god for missing it, and if i could go back in time, i would. minhyuk, watching you care for him as i've been speaking, i know that you're more in love than kihyun's mother and i were when we married, and i thank you for that, for making him happy.

"i look forward to watching you continue to grow together, and start a family of your own, if you'll let me. congratulations," he finishes, raising his glass.

everyone follows suit, and hyungwon stands afterwards, but minhyuk tunes out.

minhyuk is stunned, honestly.

maybe a little annoyed, because his father-in-law kind of made his speech about himself, but it's more than minhyuk has ever heard him speak at once and offers a dramatic shift in tone compared to the reluctant acceptance of their relationship up until this point.

kihyun doesn't seem angry or sad, just deep in thought, his eyes wet but not actively tearing up.

"hey," minhyuk whispers in his ear.

"i'm okay, promise," kihyun whispers back, squeezing his fingers.

laughter breaks out around the tables and minhyuk looks up to see hyungwon's head hung, his hand over his face in embarrassment.

"anyway, i'm so happy for you two," he continues when the laughter has died down. "you don't know it, but you're both inspirations to all of us, as individuals and a couple. i love you both, and thank you for breaking house stereotypes to be my friends. i don't know what i would've done without you guys."

"never asked me out!" jooheon hoots, and the yard devolves into a chorus of laughter again. jooheon gets a high five from changkyun just before hyungwon tackles him, knocking him off his chair and onto the ground.

"babe, we can't let them be godparents."

kihyun snorts. "yoongi and jimin?"

"yoongi and jimin."

~

_  
+two years, seven months  
_

they bring their daughter home on kihyun's twenty-fourth birthday.

more precisely, when they met up with yoongi and jimin for jimin's birthday in mid-october, yoongi told them there was a young girl at the orphanage that he wanted them to meet.

their adoption paperwork had been clear for months, but after a lot of conversations with each other and yoongi, they decided to wait for him to make a recommendation. he knows them, he works with the kids every day, and he's good at understanding people.

when they met her, she crossed her arms and demanded to know who discovered gillyweed and what it was used for. kihyun was taken aback, but minhyuk squatted down to her level and calmly rattled off the history of gillyweed's discovery, its textbook uses, and told her with a conspiratorial wink that he uses it in his own special cold remedy.

he does, and it works better than anything else kihyun has ever tried, from either the wizarding or muggle world.

she nodded at him once then ran off. minhyuk stood and shrugged, but yoongi just smiled at them. a moment later she came back with _fantastic beasts and where to find them_. she proclaimed that she was reading the whole book, and kihyun physically lost the ability to stand when she said she was on the doxy.

yoongi patted him on the shoulder, grinning widely, obviously pleased with himself, and the three of them spent the next two hours reading and talking about dragons.

they visited her frequently after that. when yoongi asked her if she'd like to go home with them, her eyes widened but she recovered quickly, proclaiming that she'd have to think about it, which took a whole thirty seconds before she — with as much seriousness as her tiny body could muster — informed them that she would.

¤

her name is amelia. she's four years old, half-korean, and a pureblooded witch that has already manifested powers.

too smart for her own good, stubborn, and exceedingly interested in plants and animals.

¤

"do you know what today is, amelia?" minhyuk asks on the way home.

"tuesday!"

kihyun's heart clenches in his chest.

minhyuk leans close to her in the back seat of the car and whispers in her ear. kihyun watches her mouth part into a tiny "o" in the rearview mirror.

"happy birthday, daddy! do i get cake? we always had cake when it was someone's birthday."

minhyuk kisses the top of her head. "of _course_ we get cake. what kind of heathens do you think we are?"

"and i can play with the cats?"

"if they aren't sleeping, sweetheart," kihyun replies.

"okay, daddy."

he locks eyes with minhyuk in the mirror and almost tears up.

kihyun left his job a year earlier, moving to the department for the regulation and control of magical creatures' dragon research bureau at the ministry, all in preparation for a child. working with the creatures on a reserve was too dangerous, he thought, and the ministry pays better, but he wasn't sure if he had made the right decision until now.

he has no idea how to be a father, but he's confident he can figure it out, especially with minhyuk's help.

~

_  
+six years, nine months  
_

"ames, honey, yuchan is here!"

"pandora's asleep on me!" she hollers back. "channie, come see!"

the boy looks up at minhyuk, bows his head, and then takes off into the house in the direction of amelia's bedroom.

yoongi appears a moment later, at a significantly slower pace than his son, and waves when he sees minhyuk in the doorway.

"kihyun, honey, yoongi is here!"

"i'll be right down!"

minhyuk steps to the side to let yoongi in. "no jimin?"

yoongi frowns and shakes his head. "he's stuck at work and an absolute mess about it."

"there will be more diagon alley trips."

"yeah, that's what i told him. channie even talked to him and said it was fine, but he still feels terrible about missing the first."

everything happened fast for yoongi and jimin. they decided somewhere around amelia's fifth birthday that they wanted to get married, so they did a few months later, and had adopted a boy who was amelia's age by christmas. minhyuk did a lot of babysitting and the two kids became inseparable pretty quickly.

kihyun gets this constipated look on his face when minhyuk talks about how cute it would be if they fell in love like him and kihyun did, because that’s his _baby_ , and "boys can’t be trusted! we were boys, minhyuk!", so naturally minhyuk brings it up whenever possible.

"okay, okay, i’m ready!" kihyun calls as he comes around the corner, his quick steps slowing as he approaches minhyuk’s side and notices yoongi is alone. "no jimin?"

"no jimin," minhyuk says, leaning in to press a kiss to his husband’s head. "catch up, i’ll go get the kids."

¤

minhyuk hums to himself quietly as he makes his way to his daughter’s door.

they considered moving when they talked about adoption, but landed on expanding a little more, because they were both too in love with their house. amelia’s room shoots off the kitchen, opposite the greenhouse.

the door stands open, as is the rule when yuchan is over — they’re young and their parents are gay, but that doesn’t mean much — but minhyuk pauses his approach when he hears his daughter ask a question that sparks something in his memories.

"—do you think it’ll be like?"

"dad said the slytherin dungeon is _awesome_."

"my dad told me a story about papa being afraid of the dungeon on their first night," amelia says. "he made me promise not to tell papa he told me, but he freaked out because he didn’t like the idea of the water. did you know there’s a giant squid?"

"of course i know there’s a giant squid. i’m going to meet it!"

"you can’t," amelia scoffs. "he doesn't like people."

minhyuk can practically hear the eye roll in her voice and he feels a stab of amused pride as he thinks _that’s my girl_. she's strong and brilliant and beautiful and he can't believe this life is his.

"besides," she continues, "i don’t think you’re a slytherin, channie. i think you’re going to be in the ravenclaw tower with me."  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> aaaaaaahhhh. the end of this is. weird. maybe. idk. whatever i'm happy enough with it. the whole middle was a nightmare to write and i spent like three days just. staring at it being Angry.
> 
> stole yuchan's name, not sorry, stan a.c.e. joo was a pro quidditch player for a bit! hyungwon best uncle ever! wonkyun the ravenpuff couple have like three slytherin kids and are constantly Stressed. kihyun's dad is actually a kickass grandfather. nutmeg and pandora are immortal idc. amelia and chan definitely bffs. fun fact i did sorting quizzes for them and yoonmin's kid came up 50/50 slytherclaw so yes he's going to get to choose and yes he's going to follow ames to ravenclaw bc of course he is.
> 
> i have like a billion headcanons if you couldn't tell so ask weird questions if you want but i cannot tell you what story hyungwon told at the wedding bc i honestly have no idea.
> 
> and more seriously, thank you to people who read and commented as i was working on this fic. i really hope this was a conclusion worthy of the time you put into reading the story. i love these characters with my whole heart and i'm going to miss them so, so much.


End file.
